


Pristine Beauty

by Senairiel



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2020-02-05
Packaged: 2020-05-20 02:08:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 19
Words: 31,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19367953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Senairiel/pseuds/Senairiel
Summary: At the request of my bestie, OC is up for grabs. Read on to find out who OC ends up with ;p





	1. Origin

_They say that if you cross something unlucky twice, the third would be your demise._

_Strike one_

It was breezy. The sun, somewhat forgiving. She enjoyed her walks in the midst of happy couples. People talking about random nothings as they strolled about. And then, a swish of black. Long, soft and elegant. She barely had a minute to turn. And by the time she did, she noticed that the crowd around her had somewhat disappeared. Silhouettes in the distance walking in an oddly synchronized yet spine chilling manner. Almost like zombies. She immediately dismissed the thought, turned heel and headed on home because her guts told her that it would be unwise to linger any longer. 

_Missed by a whisker. Simply because he had all the needlemen he needed and didn't feel the need to throw any extras._

 

_Strike two_

She needed the cash. 21 and jobless. Not that her degree mattered anyway. Working in a top notch hotel known to house rich and mighty drug lords had its risks. But those risks yielded a larger boost in salary compared to most jobs. She was to serve drinks to the most despicable of humans in the society. She went in to fill some expensive looking glasses with the best wine they could offer. A split second was all it took. 

When she returned to the hotel lobby, the place was eerily silent. It was as if some god had descended from heaven to freeze time with everyone frozen in their places. Except that these people were all dead. Not a drop of blood spilt just needles sticking out from their heads in various angles. 

And as she lost consciousness due to the sheer shock of it all, collapsing to the floor, the last thing she saw was an eerie looking figure with skin as white as snow and hair as black as a raven that seemed to go on forever and ever. 

 _The policemen had arrived later that day. Her statement was rudely dismissed. They said that she had one too many drinks. They accused her of hallucinating. The case was closed on the spot, not for lack of evidence but rather out of fear. Because even the police knew at the back of their minds who was responsible. And they wanted no part of it._  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The last incident effectively scared the living daylights out of her. She scrapped by with what little savings she had. It would be some time before she went out job hunting again.

Living like a recluse does nobody any good. In fact, it sickened her to look at the four walls of her .....home? No, definitely not a home. A house, more like. Home is where the heart is and apart from essentially being a place of shelter from this world, there was nothing else that awaited her back at her place. There was no heart where she resided. 

She crumbled by the wall. All she had was a locket to her name. A sorry child who belonged to nobody. A person who longed for family but somehow lost them before she was even at the age to comprehend what had happened. She just couldn't remember that night. Assassins they said. They came for her family. And then, that was it. Passed on from family to family, adoptive services. Never once fitting in no matter where they placed her. So she took charge of herself,waited until she was of age and then worked to fund her search for answers from the past. 

The Zoldycks lived in the area. It was by no accident that she came here. She needed to track them down. Assassins knew assassins. If they killed her family, she needed closure. And if they didn't then her hunt would be far from over. So she posed as a visitor to Kukuroo Mountain and then when the time was convenient, she bugged the gatekeeper in private. Screamed, pleaded, cried. She could remember hot humiliating tears as she clearly remembered the gatekeeper who turned her down out of pity and out of fear for her own safety. It didn't matter when she said that she had business with the family because the family was so affluent and powerful that under no circumstances would they be associated with someone like her and so nobody believed that she was there under genuine causes. Imposter they called her. But she stayed come rain or shine. 

On the 14th day, the family had sent bodyguards to escort her out. To ensure that she was never to return to Mount Kukuroo. The gatekeeper could only apologize on their behalf. She cried bitter tears admitting the fact the she hadn't even come close to seeing the faces of the infamous assassin family. Worlds apart. She had to grow. To be worthy enough to even catch their attention before she could get the chance to question them. 

She was escorted unceremoniously out of the gatekeeper's office. As she was dragged she failed to notice the giant doors to Mount Kukuroo close as swiftly as it had been opened. His mission had just finished and he was home after a considerable amount of time. He had no time to bother with anything else. They were a known family of infamous assassins and he had gotten used to commotions like this long ago. He barely turned in her direction and headed off for a hot shower and a nice meal. 

That was 4 years ago. 

Snapping herself out of wallowing in self pity, she dried up her tears and got back up on her feet. 

_"Anya you have to try. Your life can't end this way. There are many others who have it worse. Who would kill to even be in your position. You can't give up now. You are alive. You are still here."_

She strengthened herself with an internal monologue and prepared herself a hot bath. 

Tomorrow is a new day and she was going to find a way to gather more information. But first, a job. She needed to make money by hook or by crook to redeem information piece by piece in exchange for whatever money she could gather.

She was going to start the search for answers back again and with any luck, she would succeed in this lifetime.


	2. The Beginning of the Third Strike

"It is a beautiful day today"

She took a deep breath and looked into the mirror. Long brown hair with elegant curls at the tips stuck fast against her caramel skin. Water pooled around her as she held up her pink towel and squeezed water out of her hair. 

"No matter what the outcome of today, I will come home head held high" 

Large impressionable brown eyes stared back at her from the mirror. They once used to ooze innocence. Not anymore. 

Anya pulled her hair up into a ponytail and checked her outfit once more - a grey flair skirt paired with a white bare back top. She applied some blush to her cheeks and swiped lip gloss over her lips. She wasn't the picture of perfection. Pretty but not the prettiest.  
Still, she looked presentable and that was all that mattered. 

Fitting on her signature black boots, she left the house. Anya strolled about, mindlessly taking in the essence of her surroundings while keeping a keen eye out for any job vacancies. Nothing at first. Nothing for a long time after that too. And then - 

"Can you believe that one of those monsters is getting married?"

"Who? One of the Zoldycks?"

"Yes them. Who else would anyone call monsters around here?"

Anya stopped dead in her tracks. Gossip. Gossip about the Zoldycks. Free information from the lips of strangers that required no money.  
She leapt at the chance and was quick to follow the bunch of ladies through the crowd, keeping them within earshot. 

They turned a corner and entered a small eatery. Convenient enough. Anya quickly booked the table beside theirs and busied herself with the menu all while eavesdropping. 

"Quick and out with it!"

"Alright, alright ! Word has it that one of the Zoldyck children is at the age for marriage and ..

"Oh gosh do you know what this means, Eva ?"

"Of course I do! Now don't interrupt me dear. The Zoldycks as we know, are so rich, they could quite literally bathe in cash daily and still have plenty left to spare for the afterlife of their grandchildren and the grandchildren of their grandchildren. So, as hush as it has been, powerful and influential families have been offering up their children as suitors. I mean, look at the massive advantage here. Married to one of the richest, if not the richest family around and tight security. Marry into that family and you are set for life !"

"Hold up Eva. We don't even know how the Zoldycks look like. Nobody does. All anyone has ever seen of them are their shadows. And most who do see them in person don't even make it out alive. A family who makes their living off kiling... God knows what they are like in person ! And the rumours we've heard ! The way they've killed ! Honestly i can't think of any sane parent who would allow -

"Well not like that family would simply accept anybody anyway so don't worry about it, Luka. If anything, i bet their daughter or son in law will be equally as horrid. Birds of a feather do eventually flock together anyway. But goodness me, imagine their fortunes combined. Oh well. It's all just good for gossip anyway."

"So, when is it ? Do you think it will be grand ?"

"Grand among their community yes. But they wouldn't involve ordinary folks like us and - 

She heard enough. Anya finished up the remaining of her vanilla tea, stood up and made her way home. A plan was brewing in her mind. She had to strike while the iron was hot and it was now or never. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_The stars above were witness to what was happening on both sides. Sometimes, they marvel at the way things unravel and for the events that subsequently unfold_

_At the Zoldyck Mansion_

Lunch was painfully silent and awkward. But then again, it had always been that way. 

Seated at the head of the table was Silva who had zoned out of Kikyo's constant yelping. Milluki had attempted to take his lunch to his room but for some reason, Kikyo had pestered the entire family to be seated at the table especially for this afternoon and since nobody wanted to deal with the aftermath of her high-pitched horror they yielded to her demand. The only member missing was Killua and by extension, Alluka. 

"We should have gotten Killua married early on - SILVA ARE YOU LISTENING YOU NEVER LISTEN TO ME - And this would never have happened. Why.. why Killua would still have been home, here, with me ! He will carry on our name.. Dear!!!!! ARE YOU LISTENING??" Kikyo's electronic visor became pixelated. 

Silva nearly slept off while munching on his food only to suddenly sit upright and face Kikyo. 

"Aah. Leave it be." Silva waved Kikyo away much to her irritation. 

"Illumi dear" Kikyo's voice suddenly became honeyed. 

Illumi stopped eating and looked up. His eyes not betraying his feelings. "Yes mother"

"Illumi, my dear son. You know Killua... HE HAS TO BE DISCIPLINED ! But .. but we've spoken about this before haven't we ? I worry if Killua will rebel once again if we so much as force him into mar - WE HAVE TO MAKE HIM TOE THE LINE ! But just in case, you'll carry us through won't you? Illumi?"

Kikyo's mood swings were off the charts. More so than usual. 

"Carry us through ? What do you mean mother ?" Milluki absent-mindedly chimed in, mouth half full. 

"SHUT UP MILLUKI !" Kikyo slammed her fists to the table and towered over him. 

"Illumi, you'll agree won't you? I'll start searching for suitors right away !" Kikyo squealed in delight eventhough she had already put the word out and about weeks ago without his consent.

There was a pin drop silence. 

Silva stared in discomfort not knowing how to react. 

Milluki paused mid-chew, mouth agape. For the umpteenth time that year, he found himself subconciously thanking his lucky stars that he was neither the star child whom the family expected to take over as head nor the eldest child whom had to shoulder all the garbage thrown their way.

Kalluto, seated beside Kikyo, only clutched onto his mother's dress. He pondered what was so difficult about marriage that it had the entire family all tensed up. 

And finally, Zeno turned to look at Illumi his eldest grandson whom had always been subjected to being the front-liner of the family. The tank. The person whom hell was showered upon and inconvenienced to set things right again when things did not go in the way of the family's best interest.

The best candidate to be at the family's disposal simply because he was the eldest and by far the most responsible in the family. 

"As you wish, mother" came the reply. Cold and without emotion. Not missing a beat. 

Kikyo smiled. The atmosphere at the table eased up and everyone continued on the rest of lunch with ease. 

Nobody noticed that the eldest Zoldyck son gripped his fork with a little more pressure. And if they noticed, they certainly did nothing to comfort him for that was just the way they were. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Later that day, miles and miles away_

Killua's phone beeped. His electric blue eyes widened in shock as he involuntarily mouth-sprayed Gon with a good amount of orange juice that they were all sharing.

"K-K-KILLUA !" Gon was quick to try and retaliate but Leorio stopped him. 

Killua had frozen entirely, eyes glued to the screen of his phone. Alluka who peered into the phone had no clue what the significance of it was. 

Kurapika decided that he needed to know what was going on and came over to have a look. Curiousity killed the cat. He immediately turned into a caricature of comical shock. 

Needless to say that eventually Leorio and Gon came over to have a peek as well and ...

"NANI ?!!?!??!??" came their scream in perfect unison. 

Staring right back at them, from the screen were the words

To: Killua  
>  
>  
Illu is getting married. 

From: Milluki

_And as they allowed their minds to wander, the four of them simultaneously imagined Illumi married with a truckload of his alien-looking offsprings - all having the same long raven coloured hair with expressionless blank looking eyes saying "Yes Father" to his every command._

The group paled even further. Their appetite evidently disappearing for the night.


	3. The First Encounter

"There is no way in. Not on my own there isn't." 

"God damn it all to hell" 

She grabbed a pillow and screamed into it with all her might. She knew that she had no contact to pull strings for her and that the only person who was kind enough to her, who had any link whatsoever to the Zoldyck family was -

"I'll have to beg the gatekeeper again. There is no other way." her shoulders sagged in defeat. She knew what would happen if she visited the gatekeeper's office again. She would be thrown out without mercy. Maybe this time, they might even silence her for good. What would one more death be to the Zoldycks anyway. 

Tomorrow arrived in just a blink of an eye. Anya could barely sleep all night with her heart palpitating so badly. Cold sweat dripped down her temples. She jolted awake and tried to get a glimpse of the time in the dark. It was 4 a.m. in the morning.

"You know what. 4 a.m. They would all probably still be in bed. If anything, this would be the best time to discreetly meet the gatekeeper." She forced herself to take a cold shower. Anya knew that she had to shock her senses and be on the alert the minute she stepped foot near Mount Kukuroo. This was the Zoldycks she was dealing with and one wrong move could be fatal.

4.30 a.m sharp. She was there and waiting, in front of towering testing gates. The gatekeeper was having a snooze and it was time to wake him up. 

Just as she took a faltering step towards his office, the testing gates opened with a creak. 

Empty black eyes met brown accusing ones. 

"Aah! Oh my goodness. You.... you opened the door from inside! Are you a Zoldyck?" Anya found her voice. 

Illumi stared coldly back at her. 

"And if I am?" his hands casually found their way around some needles. His face betrayed nothing and yet he was already on his guard. 

Anya could hardly believe her luck. It was now or never. Now..or never. 

"I have questions. I have questions only a Zoldyck can answer." hope. Hopeful eyes. 

"Do we look like the info centre?" he asked semi-amused, prepared to leave and not waste a second more of his precious time. 

"Illumi-sama !" the gatekeeper scrambled to his feet. 

Her time was now limited. It would only be seconds before the other guards were alerted. 

"I need to know if one of you has killed my family" 

He was already walking away. 

"My last name is Fierra. There can't be many with that surname. If you come across - 

"Let it go" 

"Pardon?" she stood by. Shocked. "So it was someone from your family then. Was it you?"

Heavy footsteps were approaching. They caught up to her and held her firmly within their grasp and forced her down to her knees. 

"Illumi-sama it won't happen again. This girl has been here before and stubborn to the core but we will deal with her and -

Illumi held up his hand. 

"Ah. Can't be helped." he walked slowly but surely towards her. His muscular outline more defined the closer he approached. Finally, he stood towering over her and she was forced to look up at him. 

"Suppose you find out that it was one of us, what would you do ?" he deadpanned. "And I won't give information out for free, you see, it's common sense. I maintain strict confidentiality with all my clients. What you want is intel gathering and our fee is exorbitant." he mused. 

"I'll pay up. Any amount. Name your price." desperation painfully outlined her already cracked voice. 

_"Did absolutely no one tell that idiot what not to say to us? One look and I can tell that she doesn't have that kind of money." Illumi internally monologued._

The minute those words left her lips, all around her knew that it was already a losing battle. This wasn't the first nor would it be the last and he had to put a stop to it now, once and for all. Certainly she had been slightly more persistent than those before her but it was slowly becoming a serious pain in the ass. 

There wasn't any paper available and he had to make his point. He reached for a needle and took her hand from the guard. 

"Let this be a reminder to you. Once and for all" was all he said. 

And then, a sharp pain. She screamed and thrashed about but his grip was firm. She pleaded for him to stop but he kept going. She bit her lip until it bled. The son of a bitch was actually carving the digits of payment onto her very skin. They were raw and bleeding by now. Crimson drops of blood decorated the floor and stained his needle. And yet, his face was calm and collected. His breathing was even. The bodyguards were worse. They stood by, hardened like stone, never flinching from the sight which beheld them. Time crept by slowly, each prick of the needle agonizing. She came close to losing her mind. 

They were monsters. Bloody monsters. 

There was a pause. She was painfully aware of the throbbing pain and slowly trailed her eyes to the offending area. It was a mess. A wound like that would take some time to heal and even if it did, would leave ugly scars behind. But that wasn't what had alarmed her. Her eyes widened in shock at the number of zeroes carved out. 

"You can't afford us. Not in this lifetime. If i see you again within this compound, I will end your life. Consider yourself warned." he monotoned and turned to leave. 

"I'll do it." 

His turn to be taken aback. But even if he was, it didn't show. 

"I'll do it. And i'll be back with the money. No matter how long it takes. I will do it, even if it is just to spite you" she spat. Things had just become personal. 

The corners of his mouth flicked upwards. This was on the verge of becoming interesting. 

He continued walking and disappeared into thin air. After all, he had a mission to attend to and no longer had any time to spare.

_Illumi Zoldyck is never one to be late. Especially not on a paid job._

Back at the scene, a frail little body held up by the bodyguards crumpled into a messy heap. It was too much for any ordinary civilian to bear and with all the adrenaline rush gone, she had none left to sustain her for the moment. Fatigue from withstanding the earlier pain overcame her like a wave

"What do we do with her now?" a rather small framed bodyguard asked. 

"I'll take her in. She must have been truly desperate. God knows what she has been through" the gatekeeper responded. 

"Zebro, Madam Kikyo won't like-

"Then we don't tell her. We won't breathe a word about it to anyone. Not to her. Not to master Illumi. Not to master Killua if he returns. Not to anyone. And since she is a nobody, it's not like anyone would bother with her anyway. They wouldn't waste their time with me either unless the situation arises. If we let her go now, she's bound to return. There will be bloodshed. Let me talk to her when she comes to" the gatekeeper finished. 

"Sometimes, Zebro, you're too kind for your own good" 

They turned to leave as the gatekeeper carried a rather limp girl away from the entire ordeal.


	4. Research

"At this rate, it's going to take me a million years to even open the front door !"

Zebro shook his head. Indeed it was a difficult task. This girl neither knew nen nor had the raw strength to push the door and he wasn't the person who could activate her nodes and awaken her nen usage. 

One week ago during her encounter with Illumi, she had woken up several hours later, passed out from her exhaustion. They had a simple talk. Zebro knew what she was after and thought it was a rather simple request for the Zoldycks to fulfil. Unfortunately, the people he worked for were elitists who wouldn't waste their time taking requests from random nobodies. If they did, they weren't Zoldycks. 

The only way to obtain their attention was through the means Gon, Kurapika and Leorio used one year back. That had been the only effective method thus far. But they, at least, were hunters. Zebro had tried to get the girl to give up but she returned on a daily basis, determined to learn to open that door and he was only worried that Illumi could be back from his mission at any given time and put an end to the whole charade. 

_"This...this mere civilian is in over her head. I should tell her to stop"._ Zebro sighed. 

At his sigh, Anya looked up at him. She knew what that sigh had meant. Another day another failed attempt. She was getting nowhere and Illumi could be back at any given moment.  
She yelled her lungs out, picked up a rock and threw it at as hard as she could at the gate before falling backwards. She didn't bother to pick herself off the ground. She was exhausted and the view of the sky lying down looked peaceful. 

_What they didn't know was that her repeated attempts had caught the attention of another Zoldyck member_

Back in his domain, Milluki looked hard at the security footage. It was that girl again. Over and over again. He was getting annoyed. There was only so many times he could look at the face of the same person on screen before he himself got bored. Besides, this girl had failed one too many times. It wasn't even entertaining anymore. 

_"I should consider telling mother that we have an annoyance at our gate and let the fun begin. Or we could do with another servant, though i doubt she would last even 5 minutes with the servant training."_ Milluki giggled to himself. He still had the footage of her encounter with Illumi. Now THAT was entertaining. Milluki kept the footage for laughs, when he wasn't busy having fun collecting expensive figurines or eating junk food. 

As he absentmindedly replayed the footage from that night, it occured to him for the first time, that he could do what he did best. Put his intelligence to the test. Milluki paused the footage and gave it some serious thought. 

_"Maybe I should look up her past. Put an end to the russian roulette of which one of us did her family in and then I could use that piece of information as leverage."_ Milluki's eyes gleamed. Leverage over any of his family members was worth ten times more than his weight in gold. And plus, not like he had a lack of spare time anyway. 

He immediately got to work. Tracing. Researching. Connecting dot to dot. 

For the first time in ages, he burst out of his room. 

"GRAMPS!"

"Oh? Milluki? This is unexpect-

"I NEED OLD NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS. DO WE HAVE THEM ?" Milluki was all worked up now.

Zeno paused. Internally, he facepalmed. Of all his grandchildren, Milluki had always been the weirdest. The one to most likely have fetishes. God knows what the kid is into now. He should be out there anyway aiding in assassination. Zeno silently judged Milluki. But then again, that kid was the only reason why their family could survive in a tech era. He had purpose and at the end of the day, he was still a Zoldyck. Zeno sighed. 

"Eh. I think your mother may have had the servants dispose of them in that cellar over there. Who knows. Knock yourself out" Zeno casually pointed Milluki in a direction before walking away. He had other things to do instead of pandering to Milluki's needs. 

Milluki rushed over in childlike excitement. He kicked open the door to the cellar in a rush of adrenaline. And then his pupils dilated as his mouth formed a shocked "O"

Placed in messy tower-like stacks before him were piles and piles of old newspaper that filled the entire room end to end. Undisposed. The entire room itself, needless to mention was huge and Milluki knew that it was going to take him eternity to sift through everything. 

"OH FUCK ME" Milluki screamed and shook his fists in rage. He wanted to slam the door to the cellar so hard and never look back. To return to his domain, turn on the air-conditioning and just do what he always did best. Chill. But he just couldn't stop thinking about the chance of having that leverage. If used right, he could get a lot of things out of it, especially if that information could be used to trade off for money. Or for a favour from either of his family members. He did after all learn this the hard way from that devil of an older brother. 

There was no choice. Such information is a gamble. It may as well turn out to be nothing. But on the other hand, if it was something.....

Milluki heaved a big sigh, then turned his head and cupped his hands over his mouth. 

"KALLUTO I NEED A FAVOUR" 

His voice echoed around, loud enough for everyone to hear. Zeno shook his head wondering what on earth could Milluki be up to now. Silva couldn't care less about it and Kikyo tsk tsk-ed away, irritated. Her pastime of dressing up Kalluto now evidently disturbed. 

Kalluto perked up. It was very rare of a Zoldyck to ask for favours and should the favour be fulfilled, the rewards were....very rewarding. His eyes slowly gained back their shine as he had just found a new excuse to distance himself from the long tiring dress up sessions Kikyo had subjected him to. 

"Mother, ill excuse myself now. I'll go and see what brother needs." Kalluto bowed gracefully. 

"AH KALLUTO-CHAN but we were having such a good time.. THAT MILLUKI ! HE SPOILT EVERYTHING ! Now hurry up and go Kalluto-chan, you shouldn't keep your brother waiting." Kikyo wailed and went to sit beside Silva who was now painfully aware that he would be the centre of attention for Kikyo as Kalluto wasn't going to be available for quite a while. 

Silva groaned. 

"What was that dear ?" Kikyo turned her gaze onto Silva.

"Nothing honey"

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Done for the day_

Illumi walked into a bar and located a familiar red head. He pulled up a chair and sat down beside him. 

They sipped their drinks in silence. 

"Any big jobs for you after this?" Hisoka asked. 

"No. Why?" 

Hisoka stared into space. "Nothing. I'm bored. I thought i'd tag along with you on those jobs, if you had any lined up after this" he grinned at Illumi. 

Illumi faced Hisoka and continued his nonchalant stare. 

"If I had one such job lined up for me, I wouldn't tell you. Unless - Illumi reached a hand out to Hisoka. "You do my dirty job for me and I get to collect payment. You get entertained and I get paid. If you stay silent, I assume my offer is taken"

"No thank you, _honey_ " Hisoka emphasized on the last word and chuckled while swatting Illumi's hand away. Illumi continued to sip his drink. 

One day, somehow or another, they would end up killing each other. It was Illumi's firmest belief. Until then however, there was no need to be hostile. 

Some moments of silence passed. Silence, much like that night that seemed like an eternity ago now. Illumi's eyes widened just a little. 

"Does the name Fierra ring a bell to you?" It came out so softly, almost like a whisper.

Hisoka almost missed the question. He turned to look at Illumi. "Sorry, what ?"

"Nothing. Forget it" Illumi dismissed the conversation


	5. Who Are You, really?

Loud thumps echoed through the mountain. Trees shook to their core. The ground rattled with every step. 

A sudden scattering of dirt covered the surrounding plants as it came to an abrupt stop. 

Wet licks and a hyperactive wag of the tail. 

Illumi made sure to pet Mike well and spoil it a little with some meat treats. The treats were, after all, a portion of some poor soul who was on his hit list in his most recent job. 

He finally made it to the front door of his house and checked the time. It was 3 a.m in the morning. Illumi casually walked over to the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water. And that was when he heard it. Strange, shuffling noises coming from a certain direction. He set the glass down quietly on the kitchen tabletop and swiftly arrived at the source of the noise.

It came from the cellar. Which was weird because Illumi couldn't remember the last time anyone visited that part of the house. 

His suspicions grew. And then Milluki's voice came through from the other side of the door. 

"We're a quarter done. That leaves plenty left to go" 

More shuffling noises. 

Illumi turned to leave. It was Milluki and frankly, he couldn't care less what Milluki was up to. 

"Hurry the fuck up Kalluto !" Milluki hissed. "Or we'll be here forever"

Illumi paused. _Kalluto?_

This was unusual, even by Illumi's standards. Kalluto was hardly around any of them. In fact, any of them were hardly around any of them. The Zoldyck sibblings didn't exactly mingle around with each other much less come into close proximity with one another unless they absolutely needed to with the exception of Killua and Alluka. 

Against his better judgement, Illumi gave the cellar door a little nudge. 

_What the fuck?_

Seated in the middle of the cellar room, surrounded by piles and piles of newspaper, were Kalluto and Milluki. Both had their faces covered in black ink smears from too much handling of newspapers. They abruptly dropped whatever they were doing and stared in absolute shock at the person in the doorway. 

"A-a-aniki" Kalluto bowed his head and avoided eye contact. Illumi was a terrifying head figure of the family, second only to their father. Needless to say, with the amount of time Kalluto spent around Kikyo and by extension Silva, Illumi was the person Kalluto feared the most in the family. Especially after hearing about what Killua had to go through. 

"W-w-what are you doing here?" Milluki stammered. 

"I could ask you the same. Both of you" Illumi's gaze focused on Kalluto. _What the fuck is happening to my family?_

Kalluto kept his gaze on the floor. Milluki went mute. 

"And here I thought you were more disciplined" Illumi frowned in disapproval at Kalluto, irritated at the scene before him. They were a bunch of assassins. _What was this nonsense that was going on._ Kalluto felt a pang of shame. 

"We..we were doing it for a client. This is a paid job" Milluki found his voice back again and faced Illumi. 

A moment of intense silence passed and then Illumi spoke up. 

"If I hear a single sound that wakes me up before I should" Illumi's aura flared a little. 

"Y-you won't hear a thing! We promise!" Milluki swore. Kalluto enthusiastically bobbed his head and then continued to face the ground. Both of them, like a pair of scolded children. 

Illumi didn't buy it. Client's request ? It was clearly a lie and he could tell when someone lied to him. But he wasn't getting paid for this. As it was, the only person he had to bother with was Killua. Not the rest. In fact, he had already wasted enough time interacting with the pair of them and since he certainly wasn't getting paid to whip the rest of the bunch into shape, he decided that it simply wasn't worth the trouble. 

Illumi gazed at them once more before leaving them to their own. 

Milluki and Kalluto released a breath that they didn't even realize they were holding. 

"I-I think he knows" Kalluto whispered. 

"Of course he knows I'm lying" Milluki whispered back exaggeratedly. "But he's decided to look the other way and while he does I suggest we hurry up"

The sift through newspapers continued at a much quicker pace, albeit quieter. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Alright let's do this again" 

Anya was all fired up. Even more so than before. 

"No. Master Illumi is home. You have to leave. You have to leave now before somebody sees you here." Zebro quickly pushed her away. 

"When can I return?" 

"Maybe never? Look, go and learn up the basics. You need someone who can guide you and more importantly, teach you about nen. That person, isn't me. You get that done, you come back here. If not, don't. Now GO." Zebro quickly glanced up at the security cameras. With any luck, Illumi wouldn't be checking the footages anytime soon especially if he didn't have the urgency to do so anyway. But on the other hand, if he did somehow find out that she was still here, there would be hell to pay. 

"Alright then. Point me in a direction. Who... who can teach me this nen thing." 

"Go find Master Killua. Or Gon. You find one, you'll find the other."

"Sure. Do you have their contact?"

Zebro looked at her apologetically. Master Killua did not fancy being found. Least of all by his family members or someone who worked for his family. Needless to say, nobody had any leads on where the little critter was much less maintained contact with him. 

For the umpteenth time in her life, Anya had hit a rather definite dead end. Her shoulders slumped as she turned to walk away.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Later that night_

"We've done it"

Both Milluki and Kalluto sat shaking in the middle of the cellar holding 5 precious sheets of newspaper, all arranged in date order. 

"What. Is so important. About this" Kalluto huffed and tried to get a look at the sheets he was holding. 

Milluki immediately snatched the pieces out of Kalluto's hands. "Hey ! Not part of the agreement. Your part is over."

Kalluto's eyes narrowed in slits. 

"Alright. I owe you. We'll make a blood deal. A one time trade, to be used, at any given time. ONCE" Milluki leaned back exhausted. This was a miracle. He had gone an entire day without eating. 

Kalluto nodded and settled for the reward. Now he had Milluki at his disposal in any way he pleased and he was going to use it at precisely the right time. 

They parted ways. 

Milluki headed for the kitchen and scoffed down whatever food and drinks he could find. The servants stared at him in doe-eyed shock. Milluki ignored them. He headed straight to his room, took a hot bath and then turned the air-conditioner all the way down to the lowest temperature that it could go. 

_Time to get to work_

He matched the timelines of the newspaper articles and proceeded to search. Phone contacts, addresses, occupations, relations, achievements and so forth. More and more sifting. And then finally, his eyes widened at a certain piece of information regarding the Fierra family. A rivulet of sweat ran down his back despite the utterly inhumane cold temperature that his room was in. 

_Oh hell. What on earth are you ?_


	6. Truth

_None baffles the world more than the existence of a particular family. Much lesser known than the Kurta clan, this family was accidentally discovered by a Double-star Species Hunter who had mysteriously disappeared without a trace. The family is rumored to have originated from the Dark Continent but this is yet to be confirmed. Upon further investigation, the family is found to have perished 10 years ago, leaving one sole survivor behind - an unnamed newborn. Whereabouts unknown. No record of the child has been found to date. The autopsy reports of fellow family members showed no signs of an attack contrary to the belief of assassination. Self-inflicted wounds were not found but cannot be ruled out. According to the few, wealthy acquaintances of the family, the members were warm and friendly and had amassed a notable fortune selling rare herbs sourced from the Dark Continent itself. Certain samples of the sold herbs that were obtained from said acquaintances were sent in for investigation and had been verified to indeed have come from the Dark Continent. However, it is noted that none of the members are licensed hunters and hence it is unknown how such herbs came to be in their possession. The herbs were used to cure wounds and certain ailments. Once again, it is not known how the members of the family even came to possess the knowledge of cultivating those herbs into effective medication. It is suspected that much like the Kurta clan, this family may have had abilities. On further inquiry, the family is said to be known by their surname, Fierra. However, it is questionable at this point if the members of the family are even human to begin with should their origin in the Dark Continent be confirmed._

Milluki gulped and clicked further. The article seemed to have been updated some nine or ten years ago. 

_Access to further information-DENIED_

Milluki tore at his hair. No amount of hacking got him past the hunter database. He should have known that anything and everything valuable would be known first and foremost by the highest authority within the hunter community. But for the first time, if he was correct, something valuable had walked up to the Zoldyck household and he was the only person to know. He was also very much aware that the girl herself had absolutely no idea who she truly was. And best of all, the article itself had stated that the whereabouts of the unnamed newborn was unknown. So not a living soul knew if the child had even survived over the years. But he did. And all things considered, knowing this meant that he was one step ahead of even the most revered Double Star Hunters.

_One small thing though. If the girl was anything like Alluka, he certainly didn't want to be the test subject. There was no choice but to pay Illumi a visit._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The next day_

Milluki nervously approached Illumi's chambers and knocked softly on his door. 

"Come in" came the calm voice from inside.

And so Milluki stepped into the room just in time to see Illumi arrange the last set of his needles. _"Gosh does he ever stop working?!"_

"I may have some information that might be in your best interest." Milluki fidgeted about.

"And naturally, you would want some form of payment, am I right?" Illumi turned his attention to Milluki "So tell me. Why should I be interested?"

"Would you be interested in another potential Alluka?"

That did it. And just like that, Milluki had Illumi's undivided attention. Illumi's eyes widened further.

"I'll take that as a yes. Before we go any further, I'll need monetary compensation. As you know, I'm running a bit low on cash and there is an auction coming up that I want -

"Name your price" Illumi cut straight to the point. 

"All proceedings from your last fifteen jobs" 

Illumi didn't flinch despite the harsh reality acknowledging that all those hours spent on dangerous missions with his life on the line now went to his younger brother who hardly participated in the family business of assassination. This was the way of the world after all. He reached for his device and wordlessly transferred the cash.

Milluki's device beeped with the amount. _"Holy fucking jackpot. Just how rich is he ?! Maybe I should have pushed for the last twenty -_

"Don't even think about it" Illumi deadpanned. 

And so Milluki started his tale and spared no details. When the tale was over, Illumi regarded him once more. 

"Am I correct in my assumptions that you've come to me with this information simply because you didn't want to risk your life in the event that this girl is another request based wish granter ? If she was the real deal, you'd bid your time and study her. Study the loopholes based on any fatal error that I should commit."

Illumi had seen right through him. Though, this came as no surprise. 

"Well. You're correct. But you do have a choice. You paid for information. You could choose to not pursue it" Milluki's eyes narrowed into slits while grinning. He knew it was far too good of an opportunity for Illumi to pass up and he was going to see to it that Illumi took the bait. 

"Her address ?" came the nonchalant question. Illumi was no idiot. He was going to take a risk but an extremely calculated one at that. 

"Ah" Milluki's eyes gleamed. "And that will cost you anoth-

"I will personally see to it that every last one of your figurines burn" Illumi's eyes became horrifyingly cold. 

Milluki shivered. Now he knew exactly where Killua inherited his threats from. 

"J-joking. Calm down, geez. Here's the address." Milluki hurriedly scribbled down the address and exited the room. _Personally he prayed that it would be the last time he saw the devil in a very long time_


	7. When Black Meets Brown and Red

To : Hisoka  
>  
>13, Sakura Street. Lot 4, Room 27  
>Favour required

From : Illumi 

Hisoka's phone beeped. He groaned. It was still early in the morning and as far as he could remember, there was no current business that required his attention. His fight with Chrollo was still pending. He didn't remember contacting Machi for a quick fix up. Gon and Killua would do anything in their power to solve their problems on their own unless absolutely necessary. Not that he didn't have fun mentoring the two on their whimsical adventures. 

So who the devil was -

He saw the sender and groaned once again. Damn Illumi and his knack for waking up sinfully early. Of course it was something important or the eldest son of the Zoldycks wouldn't be bothering him. In fact, it was always the other way around. Hisoka was the one who always had nothing else better to do. He threw a pillow against the wall and then sat upright. His toned arm reached out for his blanket and tossed them aside. Then he sat at the edge of the bed, brilliant red hair spilling over his angelic face devoid of makeup. Sighing for a fraction of a second, Hisoka stood up stark naked and made his way to the shower. 

_Back at Sakura Street_

Long black hair swayed in the wind surrounding a lean, muscular figure. He didn't need to resort to any skills walking past the half asleep apartment security. Surely but swiftly he made his way up several flights of stairs without breaking a sweat. 

_"Room no. 27"_

He knocked on the door. There was silence at first and then a soft, feminine sounding reply came from the other side of the door. 

"Who's there ?"

Illumi recognized the voice right away. He also knew that there was no point in introducing himself at the door. No sane person was going to open the door to one of the world's deadliest assassin who turned up unannounced, much less the girl he had physically marked with his needles not too long ago. Nevertheless he needed her to open the door anyway and so -

"Pizza delivery" came the confident monotonous reply.

 _"But I didn't order pizza"_ "Not mine. Wrong address" Anya dismissed the voice at the door. 

"It's the right address" the voice wasn't giving in. 

"I'm absolutely sure that you're wrong" Anya got out of bed, put on some baggy clothes and headed to the door. 

"I'm never wrong" came the reply.

 _"Well this is one persistent delivery"_ Anya grabbed the handle of the door and swung it open in half irritation. "I'm telling you - " 

She froze. Her guts twisted where she stood. Mouth ran dry. Her heart started pounding like crazy. And that was when her senses kicked in. She tried to close the door on him but it was too late. Abandoning the door, she turned to flee but he had already established a firm grip around her wrist. Illumi yanked her towards him and immediately covered her mouth with his remaining hand. 

"I'm here to talk. Nod if you understand. Don't try anything you'd regret" Illumi released his grip, locked the door behind him and made his way into her living room.

"I...I haven't showered" she bid her time. 

"Doesn't matter to me" he eyed her from tip to toe. 

"I haven't brushed my teeth either" she slowly inched away. "I'm not ready to receive guests. At the very least, allow me to make myself presentable". She had her heart in her mouth. Anya knew that she had to think on her feet but she felt like she was on the verge of blacking out due to the sheer magnitude of her fear. The next best thing to do was to inch closer to the bedroom, barricade herself in there and call for help. She fervently hoped that her legs wouldn't give out anytime soon since they were starting to feel like jelly rooted to the ground. 

"You're going to lock yourself in and call for help. Don't bother." Illumi took another step towards her.

"Well I'm not going to cooperate. S-s-tand back ! Don't come any closer or... or ill -

"You'll do nothing of the sort. This simply will not do. I need your full cooperation." Illumi appeared to be deep in thought. "Ah. I know what i'll do ! If I allow you to make yourself presentable, will I then have your full cooperation?"

"W-why are you being nice to me?" his casual demeanor was effective in making her drop her defenses. Whatever he was doing, it was working. _What is it that I have that he could possibly want ? What is it that I have that brought Illumi Zoldyck to my doorstep ?"_

"I'm not being nice. I'm giving you the standard treatment I give my clients"

"Oh. And I thought you mentioned that I could never afford you. I still can't. How am I your client?" Anya's eyes darted around. She was desperate. Desperate for any object to be used in self defense. It was now or never.

"Ill explain if you cooperate. Simple as that. Final warning, do not try anything funny" Illumi maintained his blank expression.

"Are you some sort of mind reader ?! I give up !" Anya collapsed onto the ground, her legs finally giving way. 

"Your hands were sub-consciously reaching out for objects" Illumi bluntly pointed out. "Let's come to an agreement. You may shower and clean yourself up but it will be done in front of me"

"EXCUSE ME !" a subtle blush crept onto her cheeks. 

"You're insane! I'm not going to do anything! I promise ! I-I'll leave the door unlocked but for goodness sake let me have my privacy!" brown alarmed eyes stared into black abysmal ones. 

"Very well" was all he said. 

Anya glared at Illumi and proceeded to grab her towel. She entered the bathroom and slowly removed her clothes. Her mind was scrambled. She couldn't think of a single way out. At best, if she tried again, she'd only earn his wrath. At worst, she'd end up dead. A long sigh escaped her lips as she allowed the cascade of water to take her mind off a certain unfeeling assassin seated in her bedroom. 

Illumi sat patiently on her bed, attentive for any sounds out of the ordinary that would suggest signs of an escape. Things were peaceful for a bit. And then, he sensed a familiar aura. 

"So, where's the entertainment?" Hisoka's eyes glinted. "My dear friend, how vague of you. You don't tell me why, how or who and timing seems to be fuck all for you." he continued in a singsong tone. 

"You're late" was all Illumi had to say to that. Hisoka sighed. 

"Alright, out with it."

The sound of water from the bathroom ceased. Anya froze on the inside. She was absolutely certain that she had heard someone else's voice apart from Illumi's in her bedroom. Little did she know, it was two of the world's worst combination of people to have in a room. Anya panicked and stumbled to lock the door. 

"Ms. Anya. If you touch that lock, I will enter by force and bring you out." Illumi adjusted a few of his needles. 

_"Ms?"_ Hisoka raised an eyebrow in Illumi's direction. "You were having fun and called to share? How generous" Hisoka ran his tongue over his lips, aura flaring. 

Illumi side eyed him and dropped his voice. "If I'm unable to obtain control over her and die trying, kill her"

Hisoka was taken off guard. He couldn't understand why Illumi himself wouldn't be able to finish her off since it would have been easier than breaking a toothpick. She certainly wasn't a nen user for if she had been one she would have tried taking Illumi head on right away and probably died trying. He turned to look at Illumi, puzzled. 

"We're possibly dealing with another Alluka"

"Ah" Hisoka understood.

Right on cue, Anya flung the door open, clad only in a towel. "M-Mr. Zoldyck! Who is this?!" She furiously gestured towards a certain red haired magician. 

"Mr. Zoldyck ? How politely cute" Hisoka giggled. "Alright we've got business with you, apparently." he stood up. "So get dressed." he eyed her with a sickening look. "Or don't"

Anya turned to look at Illumi whose face was as cold and impassive as ever and gave him an exasperated sigh. Keeping her gaze on both men she rummaged around her cupboard and grabbed a pair of shorts, a plain top and some underclothes following which she threw them both the dirtiest look she could muster and slammed the bathroom door as hard as she could. 

Hisoka covered his face with his palm _and laughed and laughed and laughed._


	8. Trapped

They sat facing each other in the living room, tension growing by the second. 

"Mr. Zoldyck why are you here ?" 

"To answer your questions in exchange of you answering mine. Fair enough?"

"Sounds fair. I'll go first then considering the shock that you've put me through this morning." Anya faced Illumi. He gestured for her to continue. 

"Did you or your family kill mine?"

"No"

"You're an assassin. You must have connections. Did you know whose work it was then?"

"No"

Anya was getting irritated. 

"Do you know the reason my family was killed?"

"No"

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"I have no reason to lie. I'm an honest man." lllumi held his gaze, never once wavering. "My turn"

"Ms. Anya who do you live with?"

"As you can see, I live alone"

"When you were little, did the people you live with experience anything strange around you?" 

"Not that I can remember"

"Have you yourself, noticed anything out of the ordinary by your own doing?"

"No"

Hisoka fiddled around with his cards now enveloped with nen. He was growing impatient and Illumi could sense it. It was only a matter of seconds now before Hisoka had his way with the girl. 

"Ms. Anya I'll make this quick. Fact number one, your family was not attacked. Cause of death unknown. Fact number two, you yourself may or may not be human. And finally, fact number three, the reason why we're here. You may or may not have abilities that I want." Illumi stood up and took a good look at his surroundings before making his way over to Anya.

"H-hang on. What ? I-I can't understand. B-But that can't be. Ho-

"Ms. Anya I have all that I need. You live alone, you won't be missed. I'll need to take you with me until I can figure out the kind of ability that you may have" Illumi's porcelain face appeared a little more cruel than usual despite having no change in expression.

"Mr. Zoldyck I have no idea -

One swift hit at the back of her neck was all it took. Just like that her world went dark. Illumi picked her up and tossed her to Hisoka who slung her over his shoulders. 

"I'll need to make arrangements. Until then, she's with you." Illumi walked ahead.

"Oh? But she's not my problem. What's in it for me?" Hisoka smirked. _In three...two...one_

"Do what you will. Use whatever method necessary if it brings her ability out. But do not break her. I have no use for broken objects." and with that Illumi disappeared out of sight. 

Hisoka came close to losing himself and clenched his fists with such intensity that it drew blood but he was numb to the pain. He vividly imagined all the things that he could do. The fun he would have after being starved of entertainment for so long. 

_He would make her beg_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A blur smear of beige and black spots kept disappearing in and out of her vision. Anya slowly blinked her eyes and came to her senses.

She was placed lying down on a bed but it was not her own. She winced at the dull aching pain from behind her neck and rubbed the sore area. Anya pushed the bed covers aside and stared at the ceiling for a bit before trying to stand up. The room was beautifully decorated and more lavish than anything she had ever known. A person like her could only dream about places like this and yet, here she was. There seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary and her clothes were intact. Nevertheless, something didn't seem right. There was that gnawing feeling of fear, anxiety and impending doom that ate away at her soul little by little. 

"Good evening sunshine" 

She jumped at least three feet into the air while he chuckled. 

She regarded him in horror. It seemed as though the red haired magician had just returned from someplace horrible. His body was marked up, blood dripping by his fingertips. The wounds looked nasty through his semi shredded outfit and there were multiple bruises all over his well toned, muscular body. But that wasn't the worst of it. The red haired magician held his own severed forearm with his remaining intact limb. And most terrifying of all was the fact that he could still smile. 

"We need to get you to a hospital. Now" Anya looked around for a phone. Her mind was reeling and it felt like she was dreaming the whole thing up and couldn't find the strength to wake up. 

"No need for that" came the cool but amused reply. "You're not going to ask me the usual questions ?" he placed his severed limb on the table and pulled up a chair to sit down.

_Something was very wrong here_

"You are in pain. And we need to stop that bleeding. I'll ask you everything else after we've taken care of this." Anya couldn't bear to see the sight in front of her. Though she didn't know him, she felt sorry that he was in such an alarming state. And then, fear gripped her heart. "Did...did Mr. Zoldyck do this to you?" Anya looked around, bewildered. "Where is he?"

Hisoka continued to stare at her in amusement. And then he broke into a smile in spite of himself. "I've already called someone to patch me up. You can think of her as a medic. And no, it wasn't Illumi. You should really be worried about yourself." 

Anya's heart began to return to it's usual pace and she pulled up a chair, seating herself opposite the magician. 

"Then, I suppose, I could ask my questions now. Starting with - Who are you?"

"I'm Hisoka. You're currently in my suite at the Heaven's Arena. It's a place where fighters gather to fight battles and are ..." he paused "Handsomely rewarded."

"So...so you were working? Anya eyed his wounds cautiously.

"I had a scheduled battle this afternoon, yes." Hisoka fiddled about with his severed limb.

"I'm assuming.. you won ?" 

He gazed at her with anticipation. 

"Why? Do you want to throw me a celebration?" his eyes trailed from her eyes to her lips. _The things he could do with that mouth_

"I would...But only after you send me home" Anya remained firm.

His thoughts were instantly disrupted. Hisoka errupted into peals of laughter. "You're in no position to bargain"

Footsteps were heard outside. They were getting louder by the second. 

Hisoka got up and in one swift movement, pulled Anya towards him. Then he lead her to a spare room and pushed her in with haste. 

"Now wha -

"Don't make a sound" was all he said before closing the door in her face.

Anya sat anxiously waiting to see who the visitor was. She peeped through the keyhole and saw a pink haired lady walk in. The lady had sharp features and dressed in what seemed to look like the modern day kunoichi. She handled Hisoka with ease and sarcasm. Her very being overflowed with confidence. Despite her petite frame, she exuded dominance. For a few moments, Anya closed her eyes and fervently wished to be her. 

"You can hold your arm yourself" the pink haired lady tossed Hisoka's arm to him. 

"Commencing nen-stitches"

_What stitches?!_

Anya watched in sheer admiration as bones, muscles and nerves were effortlessly stitched together. She could hardly believe her eyes. _Who are these people?_  
By the time the deed was done, the woman had already packed up and left, not before threatening Hisoka to wire the money in.

"Can I take a look?" Anya came out of hiding. 

Hisoka casually held his hand out, beckoning her to come over. 

As she came closer he stood up and with one fluid movement, pulled his shirt off. 

"Oh Heavens! DON'T STRIP !" she sealed her eyes shut as tight as she could. 

He smirked and undid his pants. 

"Care to join me for a shower ?" his boxers fell to the floor. Sexual tension grew as he walked in his birthday suit unapologetic and proud towards a submissive little thing, stopping only a few inches apart. Hisoka ran a finger by her cheek and down her neck. _This one had virgin written all over her. It was too easy._

_"I'll ask again. Care to join me for a shower?"_


	9. From The Frying Pan, Into the Oven

She was tied up, naked and soaked in her own blood. Searing pain from multiple wound sites coursed through her body as water from the shower constantly poured over her, masking her tears.

_The poor soul had no idea. No idea that politeness and courtesy when dealing with lunatics would only prolong her life at their mercy. Oblivious that lunatics were still lunatics at the end of the day no matter how sane and collected they sounded. She really should have known better. When Illumi Zoldyck wanted something, he would see to it that he obtains it. In whatever way possible. Illumi had mentioned something about her having abilities. Something that he had wanted from her. But there was no way to go about it if she had zero clues about what she could do. The only way forward was to force her into uncomfortable situations in hopes that her so-called abilities, if she had any, would be triggered by traumatic events and eventually manifest itself. There was only one problem_

_Uncomfortable situations were an understatement when left in the hands of Hisoka_

_Because with Hisoka it was always a matter of life or death._

_He had looked into her eyes and said -_

_"Do whatever it takes to escape. The longer you're in, the worse it gets for you. And if you fail to escape, take it as an endurance test. Your journey, from here on out requires strength which you don't currently possess"_

_If she hadn't known any better, it was almost as if he was rooting for her. As if he was preparing her for what life was to catapult her into. Almost as if he was grooming her into becoming stronger;tougher._

_Above all, he was dangerous because he had given her hope._

_And then in one graceful movement, he had ripped off her clothes and bound her up by some invisible force. She could barely look into his eyes as she felt a cold breeze sweep across her naked body. Exposed. Vulnerable. Before she could bring herself to react, her body had slammed against the cold, hard floor. No amount of screaming or thrashing deterred her red haired captor from dragging her to the bathroom with ease._

_Once in, he positioned her under the influence of Bungee Gum so that she kneeled, unmoving below the shower head. Then out of nowhere, he produced a single poker card. She couldn't concentrate. Was it the four of clubs or the nine of diamonds? She wasn't sure. All she remembered was wondering how one card could produce such damage;could cut with as much efficiency as the sharpest knife around. He started off with 5 cuts. All at randomized locations, licking them as they were created. She screamed under his touch. She pleaded when his tongue made contact with injured flesh. But that hadn't been the worse part._

_After making those cuts, he turned on the shower head and switched off the heater. Therein flowed ice cold water onto her. The pain of those cuts burned and shocked her senses into overdrive. Freezing heat. Burning cold. She couldn't tell the difference. Her mind only registered the pain._

_"For every hour you delay escaping, i'll come right back in and add another cut." A test of sorts. His forte._

_"You're insane! You know that? I can't escape. I'm not the person you think I am. I don't have what you think I have. Stop playing these games!! I might end up dying" she screamed at the crazed magician._

_"If you last beyond twelve hours, you pass. I'm going easy on you because I know you do not possess any training nor technique, my dear. I simply wish to see if your willpower is greater than most " Hisoka casually walked over and soaked himself in the bathtub situated just opposite of the showerhead. He sighed deep in thought as his pale arm reached out for some soap. To have fun in the future was to prepare for the future. It wouldn't hurt him to invest in one more toy. One more hidden potential that could be tapped into. Hisoka closed his eyes and relaxed, tuning out the agonized screams as if they were background music._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Seconds turned into minutes. Minutes turned into hours._

_At first it was just pain. And then the cramps set in. Slow and excruciating. Twisting and agonizing. Her body ached from being forced to maintain a kneeling position under the influence of Bungee gum. Her knees were numb from pressure. Her voice strained from screaming, now barely an audible croak. And she had failed to escape. For all twelve hours._

_He seemed to be looking for something. For every hour that he came by to graciously bestow upon her yet another cut he had tried to look for any changes in facial features and checked to see if there was anything out of the ordinary at all. But to no avail. She had tried to tell him but he simply wouldn't listen,giggling to himself instead._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twelve hours had passed. She had fallen unconscious by then. Not that he hadn't seen it coming a mile away. 

Hisoka released control of his nen and lifted her up. To say that he wasn't tempted in the least was a lie. He had to suppress every ounce of raging urge within knowing very well that her survival would be slim to none if he came unhinged. Not that he wanted to break her too soon. Not that he was even allowed to anyway. Breaking her meant declaring war against Illumi. And that wasn't a good idea.

 _"Or was it?"_ he seriously entertained the thought.

Just then, the door to his suite flung open. Illumi stood at the entrance taking in the scene that was unfolding before him. 

"I'll take her off your hands now" Illumi strode in with a straight face. "Arrangements have been made"

The red haired jester instantly detected a hint of subtle annoyance in the assassin's voice that most would have missed. If anything, he had just succeeded in getting underneath Illumi's skin and it delighted him greatly. 

"Hey, relax. She's still very much intact. I didn't -" he made an obscene gesture.

It took Illumi more than the usual amount of self control to not smack the living daylights out of Hisoka there and then. 

"Any success?" Illumi asked returning back to his casual demeanor. 

"No. Small question ....- Hisoka set Anya down on the couch and tossed a blanket over her. "Are you sure she's what you think she is?"

"Milluki doesn't deal incorrect information"

"I see. My, my. No wonder you're so invested in her" Hisoka's eyes crinkled with delight. "So how much?" he was thoroughly enjoying himself now. 

"I'll be taking her now" Illumi wrapped Anya up tightly and started walking away. 

Hisoka chuckled. Illumi was evading his question on purpose. Which meant that Milluki had just milked his bank account. 

And if she was worth that much, Hisoka wasn't going to sit out the fun. In fact, he was going to meddle in it as much as possible. Because he could. Because he would. And most importantly because it felt so good to spite Illumi since the chance rarely occured. 

_Not that she was going to fare any better in the hands of Illumi Zoldyck_


	10. A New Life

_"Oh man. Not again."_

It was the second time she came to her senses in a beautifully decorated room not knowing where she was. Her body ached as if she had been put to sleep for a thousand years. She stumbled off the couch and managed her way to the door. 

The sight before her stunned her into silence. 

Brilliant architecture and sophisticated interiors stretched out for miles ahead. This was beyond luxurious. Time seemed to slow itself down as she took in every detail. Handcrafted wall designs, elaborate chandeliers and expensive looking furnitures littered the vicinity. 

_"I died and woke up in heaven. Hell wouldn't look this good"_

Soft footsteps approached.

"Good afternoon. I've been made to understand that you will be attending to Master Illumi" a female in black formal suit approached her. She eyed her with hostility.

_"Nope. I'm in hell."_

"Usually training for servants would be held in a separate facility but there will be an exception in your case. Master Illumi will personally oversee your training to be staff. Staff members are not allowed into rooms meant for family members. You-

"That's quite enough Amane. She is Master Illumi's business and we have our orders." an old woman with large build towered over the girl. 

"Good afternoon dear, I'm Tsubone. Master Illumi will handle your orientation. Upon completion of training, you will be joining the rest of our staff." Tsubone turned to leave with Amane in tow. Secretly Tsubone felt sorry for the girl but quickly straightened up. She and Amane attended to Silva and this was out of their charge entirely.

They seemed to have been on edge. For the life of Anya, she couldn't understand why but then her eyes widened as she remembered the events occuring from not too long ago. If her memory served her right, she had been in pain, bleeding and _certainly without a shred of cloth on her._

She quickly glanced down. A light purple turtleneck top and some weird pants. _"I wonder....-_

"You're awake." 

Illumi walked past her into his room.

She jolted to her senses and immediately followed him in. _"If these clothes are his then those two must have thought...thought that I.. that we.."_

He took one look at her already blushing face and read her like an open book. 

"We didn't. We come from two different worlds." Illumi gestured to his surroundings. "You will never be worthy"

All traces of shyness went flying out the window. 

"I'm not interested ! YOU HEAR ME? I'm not worthy ? HAH. No, you're not worthy. Why... you..you're nothing ! You cold-blooded murdering machine ! I've had nothing good to eat for the past few days. I've been beaten, bruised, cut and left to die in freezing waters. I've been kidnapped like no tomorrow. And now...now i'm being told that i'm in training to become a personal maid ? With all due respect your majesty, I'd rather go out into the world and earn my wage in the usual manner than to stay here and serve YOU ! And how could you sic that sorry excuse of a clown on ME ? You hear me? I QUIT" she stomped her feet onto the ground. 

Her face flushed with anger, hair strewn all over her face. She looked a mess. 

He had wanted to laugh so badly through it all but didn't want to give her the idea that such rebellion was acceptable and so he remained straight-faced. This one certainly needed to be disciplined if they were going to get somewhere. _And did she just call Hisoka a sorry excuse of a clown?_

"Are you quite done?" Illumi went on carrying out his usual routine. He methodically put away his shoes and proceeded to remove the needles embedded in his chest. Systematic and organized. Like clockwork.

He was calm and composed like always. Her outburst hadn't thrown him off. If anything, Anya felt like a child wanting to get the attention of an adult. With all her yelling and foot stomping, it hadn't changed the situation that she was in one bit. 

It worked. The wind of anger dissipated from within her and she wordlessly settled on the bed.

"Consider this your orientation. I will not repeat myself so pay attention." Illumi paused on his routine. 

"You are in the Zoldyck estate. It is a firm rule amongst family members to not bring in outsiders. We are in the business of assassination as you are aware of and so naturally, we have our enemies. Therefore, the only way in which you are allowed to be here is if -

"Is if...I'm staff" Anya finished with a dreadful finality. 

"Correct. Staff have restricted access to these areas and are absolutely not allowed into the rooms of family members. Staff are also prohibited from unnecessarily interacting with family members. These rules will directly hinder the plans I have in store for you and therefore I have assigned you to the role of personal attendant. Family members can bring in or elect personal attendants but they must have a certain standard of physical abilities in order to protect the family member they are assigned to. They must also be subjected to testing by the head of the family, which would be my father, in order to determine their undying loyalty to the family and to ensure that they aren't vengeful enemies in disguise waiting for a chance to harm any of us"

He stopped to give Anya a chance to digest the new information. "Nod if you understand"

Anya nodded, mute. Every word out of his mouth sounded like a death sentence. Death anyway to whatever semblance of lifestyle she previously had. Life as she knew it was about to take a drastic turn.

"Now as you can understand, I have no need for a personal attendant. I am more than capable of handling the family business and attending to family matters. This is merely a ruse so that you can stay by my side long enough for me to figure out what you're capable of." 

Anya raised her hand.

"Hold it right there. You need me but I don't need you. What's stopping me from walking out on you ? For discussion sake, say we discover that I have a rather powerful ability. I'd be able to free myself from you on my own. Why should I do your bidding ?" 

Anya regretted it as soon as the question left her lips. There were no visible changes in his expression but something felt off. It was a subtle change but she had somehow picked up on it. His gaze was murderous. _If looks could kill..._

A quick flick of his wrist was all it took to send one sinister looking needle her way. It whizzed past her in such a speed that she hadn't even had time to react and move out of its trajectory. A drop of blood trickled down the slit on her left cheek as she froze in terror. _He could have easily killed her if he wanted to. There was no telling where he might aim the next needle if she didn't choose her words carefully._

"You owe me."

"Pardon?" now she was confused. 

"You were behind on rent. That's taken care of. Also, the luxury penthouse in the heart of the city is yours entirely. No need to pay in installments."

Anya was stunned. "But I never asked for any of this."

"Let's be realistic. You weren't earning nearly enough to cover your basic needs. You are a nobody. You matter to no one. You had nothing to look forward to. So consider my offer. A luxury penthouse all paid for and enough cash to last you a lifetime. And all I ask for in return are three favours from you. Three occasions in which you do my bidding, no questions asked, regardless of time, place and person. If you disagree, leave." Illumi turned his back on her and casually made his way to the shower.

_A master manipulator of sorts. The stage had been set. From the moment they had met, she had little to no control over her destiny and the road he was leading her towards._

If she chose to leave, she would be back in the mundane routine probably working a 9 to 5 job and never earning enough cash to buy her own property. Even if she had managed to pay the deposit, she would have to pay by installments her entire life. That would leave little to no cash for anything else. As much as she hated to admit it, Illumi was right about her having nothing to look forward to. He was right about everything. And that offer would buy her a lifetime of freedom to do as she pleased. But it was all or nothing. Taking him up on his offer meant that he was entitled to do as he pleased and she would be risking her own death. _Then again, was it better to live a short but exciting life or a long, unfulfilled one just awaiting for natural death ?_

_Because Illumi Zoldyck thinks several steps ahead, the arrangements that he had made were well mapped out. It had been checkmate from the very beginning._

She mulled it over, thinking it through. To desire, is human and alas she desired. His offer was much too tempting to pass up. 

He had finished showering and stepped out clad in nothing but a towel around his waist, water dripping from the ends of his raven black hair. 

She could only admire his toned body, the result of horrendous training and flawless pale skin. He was the picture of perfection much like Hisoka. They were both in their own leagues. Just too bad that they were both terribly aware of it too. 

This time however, she wasn't tongue tied anymore. If she were to stay here, this was the sight that she had to get used to on a daily basis. That, and the fact that he was leagues above her. He was untouchable, never to be hers. The last thing she needed was to be infatuated with the heartless assassin.

"I'll take you up on your offer." 

He reached out for a hair towel. "I assume you understand what you're signing up for."

"Yes"

"You shall never question me again"

"Yes"

"This is entirely by your consent"

"Yes"

"If you step out of line, you will accept the punishment bestowed upon you."

"Yes"

"You risk your own death. Should anything happen to you, I will not be responsible"

She hesitated. 

"Y-yes"

"You will earn your own keep. I will train you enough to take up your own clients or perform some of my own missions. In return, all your basic needs will be taken care of."

"Yes Mr. Zoldyck"

"You will address me as Master Illumi in the presence of others."

"And when it's just the two of us ?" _"Please don't make me call you Master in private too. It'll be so awkward. Please oh please oh please -_

"Just Illumi would be fine. Do not interact with me unless you absolutely have to. Do I make myself clear ?"

Anya gulped and nodded. This man was terrifying.

"The entire east wing is ours. It is not advisable for you to roam about. If either mother or father decide to do away with you, then I cannot help you. My brothers will not bother you. They steer clear of what concerns me. In return, you are to avoid interacting with them especially the one with white hair. It is not in your position to interact with him. If I catch you talking to him, there will be consequences."

"I understand"

"I-Illumi" _His name on her lips felt weird. As if she wasn't worthy enough to even speak his name._

He waited for the rest of her sentence. 

"All these including the three favours I owe you are on the premise that I do have special abilities right ? And what if we find out, at the end of the day, that I am ordinary ?"

"Simple. Then you will work for me until the day I consider you to have adequately compensated me for my wasted time and money" he set the hair towel on a drying rack and plugged in a hair dryer. 

_In other words, she had signed her freedom away._

"One last question" Anya stammered noticing that there was only one king sized bed in the gargantuan sized room. "Where do I sleep?"

He gestured at the king sized bed.

"If you, in any way, disturb my sleep -

"There will be hell to pay, yes" Anya grabbed a spare towel and headed to the bathroom.

_Because life as she knew it, was no longer the same._


	11. A New Life Pt 2

_Life in the Zoldyck Estate was anything but easy._

_A month had passed and she barely got by._

_True to his words, Illumi had been a slave driver. She'd been in a far worse position than Cinderella._

_He had her up and running by 5 in the morning, daily and wouldn't listen to any excuses. On the first day of training, she had delayed getting out of bed. She heard a faint ringing sound, unaware that the alarm set was meant for her. It was a gentle nudge at first. She mumbled, half asleep and ignored her surroundings. The second warning came in the form of a harder nudge._

_"First day of training. Get up" Illumi sounded her._

_It felt like his voice came from a distant dream. He must have been irritated enough because two minutes later, she had been swimming in a bed full of water. The winter hearted assassin had poured an entire bucket of cold water onto her. She spluttered and bolted up in shock._

_"I can't believe you just did that !" she coughed and rubbed her eyes. The sight before her took her by surprise. Illumi was dressed in his usual wear, all ready and prepared to face the day. She hadn't even realized when he had woken up._

_"Believe it. Next time I won't be as lenient." He threw a towel in her direction signaling her turn to use the shower._

_"Even the younger ones are more disciplined" he muttered under his breath, displeasure plastered all over his face._

_What followed after was a series of fatigue inducing events. Once she had gotten ready, he had brought her to the lush mountain areas of the Zoldyck vicinity._

_"We're doing basics. First we need to improve that pathetic stamina of yours. Run twenty laps around Mount. Kukuroo by midday."_

_Ridiculous. Another Zoldyck norm._

_"Illumi that's insane. Just a single lap around Mount. Kukuroo is enough to kill my legs. I have to do twenty and that too by midday ? Could you please give me something a little more tailored for my level?"_

_He clucked his tongue in irritation._

_"Twenty laps remain. You can complete it by midnight."_

_Stubborn. He really wasn't considerate at all._

_"MIKE" the ground shook when it came in contact with humongous furry paws. Anya stared at Illumi, puzzled. She wondered what the need was for Mike to be called._

_"Mike here will ensure you don't cheat. No discount in laps" he eyed her disdainfully._

_Darn it. Now she couldn't even cheat her way through._

_His involvement with her for the day was done. He turned to leave._

_"Where are you going?" the question came out of her mouth as reflex. But it wasn't long before she regretted it._

_Illumi said nothing and looked at her as if she was stupid._

_"Oh right you've got work to do. Right. Er. I'm sorry. Go ahead and earn them big bucks while i run myself to death. See -_

_And he was gone._

_"See...you soon. I guess" she sighed as Mike began nudging her with his snout. It was going to be a long day._

_She hadn't managed twenty laps by midnight. On the first day, she had only managed a eight laps before her legs gave way in the dead of the night. He had come home just in time to carry her unconscious body bridal style from the dirt into the servant's quarters where her worn out leg muscles were tended to._

_And since that day, it had been that way. Wash, rinse and repeat. Day in, day out._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Back to the present day_

They were alone again, back in his room for the night. Six months of nothing but running laps around Mount. Kukuroo. While he was away for many nights on missions, a handful of staff were appointed to keep her in check. They had been just as hard as he had been, if not worse. 

_Tonight had been different. Illumi had come home from his latest mission, caught up to her while she was in the midst of running and told her that the training was off. At that point she was half starved, sweaty and horrendously unattractive while he, despite just ending the mission had looked as stunning and as presentable as when he had left._

_Anya glanced at her watch. It was only half past ten at night._

_Illumi was already walking back to the Zoldyck mansion and so she had to run to catch up with him. Mysteriously enough, though he was only walking, she could barely reach him despite running on her current energy reserves. The gap between them kept increasing. By the time she had finally reached his room, he was already ready for bed._

"So.....tell me" she huffed and panted away. "Why the sudden change of heart ?"

He simply walked over and closed the door behind her. 

"Is..is that for me ?" Anya looked at a table lavishly spread with all the finest things in the world to eat. Wine, cold juice, roast chicken, delicious broth. Not to mention the wide array of fruits and cakes. 

Kikyo had sent servants up to lay out a good supper for Illumi. It was every bit as appetizing as it looked. But Illumi couldn't bring himself to take a bite. Because with Kikyo, everything was never as straightfoward as it seemed. It was time to discuss his proposal and this was merely a small bribe. Kikyo could be pretty convincing when she had to be.

"Yes. It's for you." Illumi gazed at her and silently passed judgement when she ran over and began stuffing herself with everything in her reach. 

She was a ravenous little termite. Her cheeks bulged from housing food as she munched away. 

He was a little taken aback although it never showed. 

She looked like a little starving greedy hamster with cheeks all ballooned out. It was almost as if she looked cu-

He perished the thought immediately.

She paused mid-chew suddenly remembering her question. 

"Sho... Whatsch up ?" she asked, mouth half full. 

"I do not want a VIP view of what's in your mouth." She could sense his disgust though his face betrayed no emotion of that kind. 

"Shorry" 

She swallowed and washed down the rest of her food with orange juice. 

"What's up?" 

"It's time to start the next phase of your training." 

She was genuinely surprised. "Illumi, I'm sure you're aware that i fail to accomplish twenty laps by midnight every day. I'm nowhere near your requirement. I haven't improved one bit. And I know that you've occasionally been ferrying me back to the staff for medical attention when I'm out like a light bulb. I'm pretty sure I'm not ready for whatever it is you're going to throw at me next you know."

"Oh ? So you hadn't noticed ?"

He knew she hadn't but he was going to toy around with her for a bit. Illumi just couldn't wait for the finale of where this conversation was heading.

"Noticed what exactly?"

"The improvements are slow but not entirely negligible. Naturally this is to be expected. You're not a Zoldyck after all. Anyway, you don't realize because you haven't been keeping track of the number of laps you run."

"And you have ?" Anya was suspicious. 

"I drop by from time to time. You never believed that you could complete twenty laps around the mountain. You thought that you'd never get it done in the span of an entire day and so you stopped keeping track and ran until your legs gave out each time. Then rinse, and repeat."

She still didn't understand what he was getting at but she knew that he was about to drop another bomb on her. Any minute now. 

"Hisoka told me to give up you know. He was convinced that it'd take you at least two years to get your stamina to where I required it to be." Illumi continued in a somewhat carefree voice. 

" Hisoka ?! Hisoka as in Hisoka the clown? The jester ? The one that went so extra he nearly had me in the psychiatry ward, Hisoka? He's been following up on my development too ? HAVE YOU BEEN LIVESTREAMING ME TO HIM THIS WHOLE TIME ?! UNBELIEVABLE ! You knew how I felt about him ! YOU KNEW ! Of all people !"

By now her face was beet red and she was yelling with all her might to a rather unamused assassin. 

"I needed his input on the matter. I must admit that in the beginning I had my doubts as well. But you've proven yourself and so we move on from here." 

Her heart nearly came to a stop. She had proven herself ? But how ?

"I've proven myself?"

"You still don't understand?" Illumi looked at her dead in the eye. 

The fuse to the bomb had been lit. 

"You've been running at least forty laps around the mountain a day now."

KABOOM

"I........ I.... I WHAT!??!?!?!??!?!?!??!?!?!?!" 

Her yell echoed and bounced off the walls. Elsewhere around the mansion birds took flight, startled at the sudden noise piercing the air. 

"But since when ?" she wailed at Illumi who was still wearing an air of dismissal. 

"Since three months or so onwards"

"And why didn't you stop me for heaven's sake?" she facepalmed.

"Because it was entertaining" Illumi had to suppress his urge to laugh. The servants, he was sure, had noticed and not one of them notified her. They had happily allowed her to carry on. He could only imagine the jokes they made when they returned to their respective quarters. 

"So how many people was I entertaining exactly ?!"

She had caught on. 

"The.....the servants. THE CHEEK ! And oh my goodness. NO" she wailed in misery upon full realization.

"Yes, yes. Hisoka had his fair share of amusement as well" at this point Illumi couldn't help himself. He turned away and grinned as he tucked the unused needles into a drawer.

The little charade had helped take his mind off the proposal for a bit. Secretly, he was pleased but she was beginning to give him a headache. He silently tuned out the background of pathetic wails.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They stayed silent in bed. 

"I'm not talking to you Illumi. You've gone way too far!" Anya stuck out her tongue at him. 

"Good. Peace and quiet." Illumi turned away from her and turned off the remaining bed lamp. 

"I'm not waking up at 5 tomorrow, Illumi."

"What happened to no talking?"

"UGH ! Illumi ! I'll stop talking after I've made my point. I'm not waking up tomorrow at 5. I'm sleeping in."

The air turned chilly immediately. 

"Do you want to try me ?" came the cold reply. 

"N-No. I don't. But at least reward me for doing better than expected. I'd progress much faster that way don't you think?"

There was a pause. The woman had a point but Illumi couldn't help lamenting inwardly how slow and boring she was to train compared to Killua. For the first time since forever, Illumi wished he could turn back time to when Killua had been in training under him. God, those had been some easy times. 

"Very well." he deadpanned. 

And then two seconds later, Anya felt a flick to her forehead. 

"Oi ! What was that for !?" she rubbed her forehead. 

No reply came. 

Anya sighed and left it at that. At the very least she could finally have a good night's rest.


	12. To My Dear Readers

When i first started off with this, i had no idea that people would even like it ! I'd like to thank everyone who has been so supportive of me thus far. This work will not be discontinued - in fact, ill be working on some new chapters soon. Additionally, i'd like to apologize for the hiatus as it was unexpected. 2019 turned out to be a really brutal year and so did the start of 2020. In such a state, i'd hate to put out half-baked chapters so i didn't. Thank you for understanding and I'll be continuing this real soon !


	13. One Step Higher

_"We pray you escape and lead a good life."_

_Who are you and why are you saying this to me?_

_"To live as you wish and die when it is time."_

_Why are you saying this?_

_"To be ordinary is a luxury. We pray you are spared."_

_Spared from what exactly? Who are you and why are you telling me this? I'm as ordinary as can be._

_"We pray life is kind to you when it wasn't for the rest of us."_

_Why ? What happened to the rest of us? Who is "us" exactly?"_

_"We pray you are spared."_

_Why do you keep saying that to me ?? WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO ME ?? ANSWER ME -_

She pushed away the covers from her bed and sat upright drenched in cold sweat. It felt good to be awake. 

_"It isn't like me to have nightmares like this. When did this even happen anyway. And what time is it now i wonder ..._

Anya glanced around for the clock but soon noticed that there was none in sight. Nothing in this room was familiar once again. Not the bedsheets. Not the wallpapers. Not even -

"You're awake." 

Anya turned to face a straight haired stern faced young girl. It was the same girl from before. _"Amane, was it?"_

"Where's Illumi?" the words left her lips before she could even think. Both butlers had their eyes widened in shock. 

_"Oh fuck"_

There would definitely be consequences for addressing Illumi so casually. Not to mention that the cover might just have been blown to smithereens. Personal attendants don't go about addressing their masters so casually. Even the butlers knew where they stood.

The smaller framed curly haired butler beside Amane looked directly into her eyes. 

"Who are you?"

"I-I'm Master Illumi's personal attendant." Cold sweat. Wet palms. Anya knew they didn't buy it. 

They exchanged glances. 

"W-where's Master Illumi?" she tried again. 

"Where Master Illumi is and what he does is not for any of us to question. But if you must know, he's attending to personal matters with Lady Kikyo. Surely you as his personal attendant would have been informed." Amane's voice did not betray her emotions. Anya could swear that the temperature in the room dropped drastically. Tension hung high in the air. Everyone was on edge. 

"I am aware of it." Anya began cautiously for the two seemed to hang on to her every word. "But I wasn't told the details."

Lies. More lies. She hadn't even known that he was attending to personal matters. In fact, she always assumed that he was away at work when he wasn't around and definitely not within the vicinity. She was lying through her teeth. And they definitely knew. 

"Master Illumi is discussing his marriage proposal along with Lady Kikyo. They needed the room and Lady Kikyo wouldn't have approved of you sleeping in Master Illumi's bed so you had to be moved here." the curly haired butler spoke quietly. 

"Canary !" Amane raised her voice. 

"Let's drop the act. She isn't who she says she is and it's just us." Canary turned to look at Anya. "Look. I do not know why Master Illumi brought you here or what plans he has in store but you need to start cleaning up your act and be more careful of your surroundings. Your mannerisms give you away even for a personal attendant. As of now, we do not know your intentions and who you really are but one thing is for certain and that is you do not have the criteria to directly attend to a member of the Zoldyck family."

"Can I trust you then?" Anya looked at Canary. Hopeful. 

"Absolutely not. You're just lucky that you slipped up in front of us. If you had messed up in front of Master Silva or Lady Kikyo for that matter it would be your life on the line. If they became suspicious of you and ordered us to dispose of you, we will do so without question. It is for this reason that you must never trust us. Have I made myself clear ?" Canary's eyes were dead serious. 

"So who are you to Master Illumi?" Amane's eyes narrowed into slits. 

"Personal attendant. Nothing more." Anya monotoned with a straight face. Confidence is key after all. 

"Good. You've rested enough and Master Illumi has given us a set of orders for you pertaining to your training. The second phase begins today and since you've had enough sleep -" Amane glanced down at her watch. It was 4 in the evening. "You won't be needing any for the night."

Anya's face fell as she mentally prepared herself for the physical fatigue that her body was about to be subjected to all over again. 

"Learn to stop wearing your emotions on your face. They give you away. You want to stay with a Zoldyck? You need to be extraordinary in order to keep up. They didn't get to where they currently are without pain. Neither did we. And so must you." Amane sneered. 

_Get dressed. I want to see you ready in the basement at 1700._

And as Anya hurriedly got ready, all three in the room failed to realize soft footsteps of dainty feet and the subtle swish of a kimono right outside the door.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The basement turned out to be every bit as worrying as she had imagined it to be._

_No one would hear her screams. And even if they did, they wouldn't do anything about it._

They stood still in front of a weird looking machine with long whips attached to it.

"All you have to do is evade the whips." Canary's voice held a tinge of concern. 

"Why do I feel like that's going to be a Herculean feat ?" Anya's voice started shaking unintentionally. 

Both butlers turned to look at each other once more. No words were exchanged but both were on the same page. It was definitely going to be a Herculean effort for her. Canary was known to be eerily talented at the age of 10 when she took down a blacklist hunter and then some. Amane on the other hand had been fully equipped under the tutelage of Tsubone. No doubt that she too had a notable amount of talent in order to grasp all that Tsubone had taught her. And here was an ordinary civilian standing before them hoping to do what should be impossible for the average joe. 

They were nervous as well because neither had any experience in training a talentless civilian. 

And both couldn't deny that they were essentially walking her to her death. 

"Pay close attention to my words. There are multiple sets and patterns in which the machine will swing the whips. Most servants and butlers have only managed to go up to Level 30. Slightly above that is where Master Kalluto is at. Then at level 60 you have Master Killua who isn't even serious when he's attempting the levels on this thing. Master Silva and Master Illumi are the only ones to have completed all 100 levels on this machine." Amane paused for a moment. 

"And I'm supposed to try and reach level 100 right? I'm sure Master Illumi has given orders that are downright impossible for someone like me." Anya laughed bleakly. 

The two butlers grew silent once again. 

"Actually.." Canary hesitated. "You'd be lucky if you even manage to get through Level 1. At all."

"Oh." the dread in Anya grew. "Small wonder. Would the two of you be able to teach me how to defend myself first before turning on that thing?" she knew that she had to try something. Anything. 

"Just so you know, we don't get such teaching sessions. We're just placed in front of the machine and it's up to us to deal with what is thrown at us. Our reflexes adjust accordingly. And no, you do not defend yourself. You evade." Amane gave off a haughty air. "But we also do not intend to unnecessarily send you to the afterlife. After all, our orders were to train you. Not to kill you. I suppose Canary and I will teach you some evasion techniques. Try to keep up."

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Two hours later_

"Don't think. You won't have time to think. Let your reflexes take over. AVOID MY HITS. NOW !" 

Anya tried her best to dodge the array of punches thrown at her. Canary was quick and could hit with precision. She barely stood a chance. 

"AGAIN !"

"YOU'RE STILL RELYING ON YOUR BRAIN."

"AGAIN !" 

Anya collapsed to the floor. They were relentless. Where did they even get their energy from? 

_Slowly but surely she was beginning to understand why the Zoldycks were called monsters. They were indeed monsters in every aspect of the word._

"I... can't" she gasped. 

"No time for that ! On your feet NOW !"

Anya staggered to her feet. "I just don't want to be hit anymore OKAY ? I'M DONE. I'M DONE WITH THIS"

A fist whizzed past her face. 

"Your first dodge for today. Not bad." Canary held back on looking impressed. 

"Huh? But i didn't even realize that punch coming my way." It was Anya's turn to be puzzled. 

"Do what you did before. Tap into that mindset. That mindset of not wanting to get hit any longer. Your body will react accordingly. Now do it again. Get ready !" Canary steadied herself into a stance and began her barrage of attacks. 

Unfortunately, all the attacks landed spot on. 

"Ow ow ow ow OUCH STOP OW OUCH ! Stop stop stop !" Anya rubbed her sore areas and sank to the floor once more. "I can't replicate what I did before. I'm just not in the zone anymore."

"Then we'll just have to force you into the zone" Amane replaced Canary. "Now get up and stop that crap. ARE. YOU. READY?"

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Three hours later_

"Can we please stop for dinner ?" Anya was beyond exhaustion. 

"How dare you ask for dinner when you've only replicated your success twice in the past few hours ? What is Master Illumi going to say about that ?"

"To hell with him honestly." Anya could hardly think straight.

A punch landed square on Anya's jaw. "What the fuck was that for?" she was livid. 

"You do not. EVER. speak about any of the Zoldyck members in that manner. Not if you value your life. They can and will end you. Let this be a valuable lesson once and for all. Do not step out of line." Amane stared her down. 

"I think at this point i'd gladly welcome death thank you." Anya laid down flat on the ground. 

Canary shot Amane a disproving look which stopped yet another blow from landing on Anya. Violence wasn't going to go anywhere with this one. 

"Look. I don't know the kind of arrangement you have with Master Illumi but if he has brought you here and if you're in this far then it must be something important. Otherwise, you wouldn't have agreed to this, right ? You're here on your own will as well. And if you want out you're going to have to get better at this. Whatever it takes. One step at a time but one step higher." Canary held her hand out. 

"You're the only one here with a heart." Anya took Canary's hand and got back up on her feet. Personally she admired Canary. The girl must have been younger to her but she must have truly suffered in order to serve this household. For the first time Anya truly wondered what it really took to be a servant in the Zoldyck household and if anyone had shown them any mercy. She strengthened her resolve. 

"I think I'm ready for the machine now. What d'ya think?" Anya gave a weak smile. 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_5 minutes later_

Anguished screams and cries. 

The whips landed hard and swift. They tore at her skin mercilessly. Level 1 felt insane. 

If there existed hell on earth then this was it.

What use was all the money in the world promised to her when she wasn't even going to live to see it. 

_Anymore..anymore and it would be the end of her._

"We have to get her out of there. Now" Amane commanded. 

"The machine can't be turned off until a level has been completed and you know that. If we go in now and attempt to carry her out we'll be slow to move. It'll be fatal for us to escape with her not to mention that we'd still have to work at our respective posts tomorrow. Lady Kikyo and Master Silva are perceptive. They'd pinpoint our injuries based on our movements alone no matter how we try to suck it up and act normally. Naturally, they'll want to get to the bottom of this. And once they do, they'll eventually be suspicious of her because every living being in this property has surpassed even level 1. They'll torture her for information." Canary was rapidly firing off points. 

"If we leave her here, she dies now."

"If we save her now, she dies by Zoldyck hands."

"Master Illumi will see to it that his parents won't -

"Master Illumi has sacrificed servants just to experiment with Alluka. Do you seriously think that if it's her against Lady Kikyo and Master Silva, he'd pick her?"

"She must be useful to him for crying out loud! Maybe - 

"No. If we rescue her and she gets found out by the Zoldycks, she's dead. Master Illumi won't save her no matter how useful she could be and you know it."

"So do we just let her die here ?" Amane turned to look at the poor girl trying her best to withstand the thrashing. 

"We...we believe in her abilities to overcome this." but Canary's voice came out shaky. 

"We've doomed her to die then." Amane bit her lip. 

Neither noticed a pair of steady footsteps approaching them. Swift and barely noticeable, the individual moved with grace. 

By the time both had realized what was going on, the figure had reached Anya and picked her up bridal style.

_So this is what mercy feels like_

All anybody saw were flashes of black and green before Anya was placed outside the training zone. The individual then backtracked to the machine, stepping to the rhythm of the whips as they avoided every blow. 

Amane and Canary could only gape in horror. 

The figure completed level one effortlessly and proceeded to turn off the machine. 

"Master Illumi" 

They bowed their heads. Awaiting their sentence. 

"So how long?"

"8 minutes at Level 1 until you arrived Master Illumi." Amane focused her gaze on the floor. 

He remained silent as he inspected her unconscious body and traced every wound with his fingers. 

"We taught her some evasion techniques Master Illumi but - 

He held one hand up. 

"She wasn't quick enough to pick it up. Naturally. As expected. However." he paused. 

It was Amane and Canary's turn to look puzzled. 

He beckoned for Canary to come over. And as she came over to inspect the injured damsel knocked out on the floor, her eyes widened. 

"M-master Illumi." Canary gasped. 

Amane couldn't take the suspense and came running over to have a look. 

"How many estimated whips within 8 minutes?" Illumi looked directly into Amane's eyes. 

"A-at least about 70 to 100 whips but..." Amane trailed off as she stared in disbelief.

Lying down on the cold hard floor faced down was a barely battered body with only 10 visible whip marks. 

_Who are you, Ms. Anya?_


	14. A Piece of The Puzzle

"Hisoka ! Hisoka please wait ! You were amazing."

"Hisoka, look this way please. A nice picture should do it."

"I'm going to faint. He looked my way !"

"No, mine !"

The sea of screams and blinding flashes had no effect on the redhead as he casually made his way to his room, not before throwing a half assed smile at the ever admiring crowd that had amassed before him. 

They feared him. They loved him. But most importantly, they couldn't get enough of him. 

"If you keep getting shredded apart like that I'm only going to make money off you, you know." 

Machi greeted him grimly as they entered his suite. 

"Then it shouldn't be a problem sweetie. Don't you just love _milking_ me dry?" Hisoka drawled suggestively. 

_She worked swiftly yet again without missing a beat not intending to spend a single second more in his presence. One could never be too careful around Hisoka._

"Can I convince you to stay for dinner ? You almost always say -

The table vibrated to the ringtone of his cellphone. 

"Busy man. You won't be having time for dinner anyway." Machi cleaned up the area and turned to leave. 

"Oh what a pity. Were you going to finally say yes ?" he was annoyed. 

"Keep dreaming." she paused at the door "And don't forget to wire in the cash."

"As always." Hisoka smiled as the door closed mid-sentence. 

_My life is never boring._

He inwardly smirked as he picked up the call. 

"Do you miss me that badly Illumi kun ?

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The merciless magician made quick work of the multitude of servants who stood in his way and steadily made his way to the security room._

_And when he finally arrived -_

"Was it necessary to make such a mess in my house ?" 

"Oh _come. on._ You're just as bad." Hisoka teased. "You could have just told them that you were expecting _someone_ over for dinner and ordered them to stand down. Was that so hard now ?" His pearly whites glinted as a predatory look came over his features.

"Small matter." Illumi turned his attention towards the screen as Hisoka walked over to the nearest chair as cool as a cucumber. "You'll be paying as compensation for the new servants and for the wasted time that goes into hiring them."

 _If eyes could roll, Hisoka's pair would have spun right out of their sockets._

_Of course Illumi wasn't going to spare him financially. How very typical._

"O.K. dollar bill demon." the jester playfully threw up his hands and muttered under his breath. 

It quickly earned him a sinister side eye. 

"Oh and what have we here?" Hisoka swiftly changed the topic. 

"Hah ! And she thought she'd fare better with YOU." He errupted into peals of laughter at the sight of a rather beaten up unconscious girl sprawled over the couch. "Out of the frying pan" Hisoka gestured at himself "And into the oven." he gestured towards a rather straight-backed assassin and continued in a singsong voice. "What she needs when she wakes up is a big fat. _I. Told. You. So..._ " he trailed off.

The assassin wasn't paying him any attention. His mind was muddled up in a far puzzling matter.

Distracted Illumi was no fun to be around. _He'd immediately decided to try getting under Illumi's skin sometime later._

Hisoka reached out a toned arm and pulled up a chair. It was time to get to business.

"You're currently looking at the footage of our security cameras in the training basement. That machine in the corner is one of the apparatus used to train members of the family and staff alike. It has a maximum of 100 levels."

"In other words, she was subjected to that machine and wound up -" Hisoka spoke as matter of factly and glanced in Anya's general direction. "So tell me. How many levels did _princess_ get through?"

"None."

"Not surprising. How many levels did you intend for her to get through?"

"None."

"So what's the problem ?" Hisoka's brow furrowed. He wasn't following. 

"Before my arrival she was 8 minutes into the first level of the machine. In that duration there should have been at least 70 whip lashes dealt to her being." 

Hisoka's eyes gleamed. "Do you mean to say -

"Yes. She has avoided at least 80% of the hits."

"Our friend here has some talent I say. It's nothing for me and you but the improvements -

"She hasn't improved." 

_Silence hung in the air as they seriously reviewed the security footage from Anya's session._

A laborious sigh escaped the jester's lips. "Pull up every footage of every staff or family member that has attempted the machine."

_Go big or go home._

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The early rays of sunrise spilled through a rather fancy looking window._

They had patiently sifted through hours upon hours of security footage and it was finally coming to an end. 

_Both were relentless and spared no details in uncovering information. And that was precisely what made them brilliant. Brilliantly dangerous men._

Hisoka finished his part and got up for a stretch before sitting down on the couch beside Anya. 

"Conclusion?" Illumi awaited for some input. 

"Your machine's busted." Hisoka stiffled a yawn. "In every footage the machine goes by a particular set of movements. Take level 1 for example. The whips fall in a repeated pattern every single time. The only variation I've noted is the number of hits in a particular spot which could vary. But otherwise, if one were to memorize where the machine would hit one would be able to dodge the attacks because the machine had been consistent in WHERE it landed the whips. It's as simple as that."

"But ?"

"But in Anya's case, the whips started landing in a different pattern. In fact it landed in a pattern that wasn't observed in any of the other footages. There were also no improvements on her part. She has basically replicated every single mistake during her sparring session with your butlers and SHOULD have ended up in a far worse state." 

"Very good. Verdict?"

"It's as if the machine is doing its best to avoid her instead of the other way around. That's highly unlikely so i'd say that your machine is busted."

"There's nothing wrong with the machine. Shortly before you arrived I checked it and had a go myself."

"So it's her then." 

"Bingo." Illumi snapped his fingers.

An uncomfortable silence dawned upon them as they quietly considered their respective theories.

"What are the odds?" Hisoka was on to something. Time itself seemed to slow down then. The tick of every second resonated loudly as both individuals racked their brains to arrive at a conclusion.

_What. are. the. odds. indeed._

_And then it hit them. Hard._

_She had always somehow managed to escape by the skin of her teeth since the very beginning._

_That time at the park when she first unintentionally crossed paths with Illumi Zoldyck. When he threw needles for needlemen and she was missed by a whisker._

_Then once again at that hotel when she had entered the kitchen to refill their wine glasses - which was the exact moment Illumi Zoldyck chose to execute his plan of assassinating every individual present in the hall._

_Not that either of them were aware of these incidences prior to meeting her but all things considered including the latest training incident both men had seen a number of impossible things in their lifetime enough to consider the impossible. They may as well just have found the tip of the iceberg._

"Did you mean to pay us a visit ?" Hisoka broke the silence. "That night when we first kidnapped her and you left me to do with her as I pleased as long as it brought out her abilities."

"No but I had clients in the area so naturally I was just passing by." Illumi rested his chin on his palms.

"So why did you drop in and take off with her then?"

"Impulse. It suddenly felt like it was something I had to do." Even as the words left his lips the assassin pondered his actions. He was usually never one to act on impulse.

"Did you know then that you had just rescued her in the nick of time - from me?" crysanthemum coloured eyes narrowed at blank dark ones. 

"No."

A wolf-like grin graced Hisoka's features. He was already feeling tingly all over due to immense excitement.

_It could be all speculations or mere coincidences of course._

_But little did they know that they were closer to uncovering the truth than anyone had ever been._

_And suddenly it was as clear as day as to why she had always been lucky._

_The puzzle pieces slowly started to fit._

_Because in truth Anya Fierra really did turn out to be something other than the average joe after all._

_She had probability manipulator written all over her._

_And her journey had only just begun._

The figure sprawled out on the couch began to move painfully as if awakening from a thousand years of slumber. She slowly blinked her eyes and forced herself to look at the two men who had since put her in many difficult situations and simultaneously they turned to face her directly. 

"Good morning sunshine" 

_Oh no. That flaming red hair and obnoxious smile was the last thing that she had intended to see. Oh hell no._

"Hisoka, wh- what's going on?"


	15. Hell Is a Beautiful Place

_Once again she was caught in a rather embarassing three-way and blushed uncontrollably as golden irises as well as obsidian ones bore into her soul._

_Hisoka was definitely looking at places he shouldn't be._

_Illumi was no better, staring directly and unwaveringly into her eyes._

_Uncomfortable was an understatement by now and the tension mounted higher and higher and higher until -_

"Stop it both of you !" 

She turned to face Hisoka but he wasn't phased one bit. "Pervert !" _Guilty as charged, he grinned and continued feasting with his eyes._

Then she turned towards Illumi ready to sling him some well deserved insult but none came because staring into her eyes wasn't exactly a crime. She came up empty handed. 

"You... you..." her face turned red. 

"Go on." he gazed at her coolly while Hisoka cracked up yet again.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Happy ?" she could FEEL a gaze from the side undressing her as she spoke. "GODS HISOKA. I SWEAR." she chucked him a pillow which he artfully dodged. On a bad day her actions would have been the cause of her death but luck was evidently on her side as the magician was in a decent mood. 

A sharp sting tore up at her sides. 

"Oww oww oww oww what have you done ?" she swung furiously towards Illumi once more with an accusatory tone and then realization dawned upon her. 

"Oh. I did horrible at that machine didn't i ? So...i'll just shut up and sit down right here, if you don't mind." Anya accidentally knocked over a vase which crashed obscenely loud. 

"Really really sorry about that vase. So very sorry. From the bottom of my-" she backed into yet another luxurious item that crashed horribly onto the floor. 

Illumi's eyes narrowed into slits while Hisoka shook his head in resignation. 

"I AM SO SORRY." she wailed. "I'll just go-" and her foot caught against some wires which instantly set off a domino effect as the screens and monitors attached to the other end of those wires came crashing down in a sickening sequence. 

She wordlessly hobbled back to the couch and sat herself down avoiding eye contact. 

Illumi's gaze only hardened further. Investment or not he was seriously considering whether he should end her life there and then. After all, no investment was worth _this_ much of trouble. He stepped forward. 

She trembled and closed her eyes waiting for the ultimate blow that would bring a swift end to her life.

Instead, none came. 

"ILLU. ILLU WHERE ARE YOU. HIMARI IS HERE TO SEE YOU.... ILLU-CHAN." Kikyo's worried voice echoed around the halls. 

"ILLU-CHAN....where could he be? Oh hello there Himari give us a second. ILLUMI ZOLDYCK WHERE ARE YOU" 

She opened her eyes in sheer panic. Kikyo wasn't someone she had intended on gaining an audience with. 

"Coming mother." but his gaze on Anya only solidified. Despite his lack of expression and calm demeanor she could tell that he was irritated to high heavens. What was even mortifying then was the fact that she found the man who stood before her utterly irresistible. His porcelain face seemed so delicate as long raven strands framed it so angelically. Her eyes darted to the veins running down his muscular arms and she was instantly lost in ecstasy. Hell had never seemed so beautiful. Not even when those lips parted to say -

"Get out of my sight." 

"Yes daddy" she blurted out half in a daze. 

It was all Illumi could do to keep a straight face. 

Hisoka choked on his saliva.

_Lord knows just how many rules she had successfully broken in a matter of hours. Her soul was beyond saving._

"ILLUMI !" Kikyo's voiced loomed closer and closer. The woman was actually running in search of her eldest son who should have been ready and presentable ages ago. 

Taking it as their cue to leave Anya quickly followed Hisoka whom she realized was already out the window. "I'm so sorry." she turned back to whisper to an already closed door. 

_Illumi stepped out closing the door behind him with a soft click just in time to come face to face with a rather flustered woman he called his mother._

_"There you are Illumi. What is the meaning of this ? It's not good to keep our guests waiting-"_

_"Yes mother. I'll be down and ready." Illumi lead Kikyo away from the door as she continued her jumbled whining about image and guests and 'what would they think'_

_"Don't worry mother. I will not disappoint."_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anya painfully sneaked her way up to their room or more precisely, Illumi's room. It wasn't easy. Butlers and family members alike littered the vicinity even more so than usual. The Zoldycks were having guests which were altogether a rare occurrence and she was curious to see their faces. No doubt that they too were powerful or influential as they come for how else could they step foot into the infamous Zoldyck estate, welcomed at that. 

She crawled her way to the bathroom and showered in between screams. The wounds burned and stung mercilessly upon contact with water. It nearly knocked the wind off her lungs but there was no easier option. Howling her way through, she took her sweet time to clean up and apply antiseptics. Once satisfied she crawled her way back to the closet and picked out a pair of underclothes. Illumi was clearly preoccupied and wouldn't come barging in for the next few hours hence it would be safe. 

Or so she thought until - 

"Take it off all the way or not at all."

She froze like a deer in headlights. _Was there never a moment where she could let her guard down completely and not live to regret it?_

"Don't be shy." he casually walked across the room like he owned it. "We've been intimate before."

"That wasn't intimacy, Hisoka. It was like walking down a tightrope between life and death but you're not here to kill me now or I'd be dead already." Anya desperately tried to get under the covers.

The corners of his mouth flicked upwards. The girl wasn't wrong in the slightest. 

This was something he should have done since the very beginning but perhaps it was better done now when there was no distraction. 

"I'd ask you why you're here but i know that you'd answer me anything but."

 _Perceptive. Very good._

"Is it so hard to believe that I'm just here to see you?" he grinned, concealing the fact that he was really here to see if she was worth his time. To gauge if she was worthy enough to be considered a toy and if so, to what extend of importance. 

_Most importantly he was there to see if he could make a monster out of a creature of innocence such as her. To elevate her to great heights and watch as she self destructs. Better yet, to see if she would one day turn out to be the ultimate weapon against Illumi. Maybe Killua and Alluka weren't the only ones that could spite Illumi into kill mode when properly used._

_And then maybe, just maybe he would finally have the fight that he always had wet dreams about._

_After all, a magician doesn't reveal his secrets so easily._

"Don't do that. Don't....give me that look. It feels as if you're planning something really horrid for me." 

He was honestly taken aback although it didn't show. Between his quirky movements, expressions and intimidation which served as a smokescreen, hardly anyone could tell what was on his mind and that had been the point. And somehow here was a girl who could _feel_ him out. 

Hisoka mentally allocated one point to Anya. She was good but she wasn't there. Yet. She wasn't what he could call toy material as of now.

_No, she would have to earn that. More. He needed more._

"The thought hadn't crossed my mind." he pulled out a deck of cards as she scrambled into a defensive mode. "Oh don't be alarmed."

"The last time I saw that deck of cards it did a lot of damage." Anya regarded Hisoka carefully. The man was as deceitful as Illumi was honest. In the short span of time that she had spent with both she had figured out this much at least - that Illumi often told truths because he believed he was strong and hadn't the need to lie. Hisoka on the other hand often told lies for the sake of it even if he almost always had the upper hand. 

Because he could, because he would and most importantly because it made his opponents look like fools.

"I'm just here to pass time." he shuffled his deck while maintaining a steady gaze on her. 

"I see. No scheduled battles for today then I suppose. You're in for a rather boring evening I'm afraid. There is nothing to do here to pass time so you might as well enjoy yourself elsewhere."

He ignored her futile attempts at getting him to leave. 

"Care to play a game of cards with me?" he patiently waited for a reply. _Stage one of assessment had commenced. Nobody in their right mind played with the magician not even when he had offered to play a decent game. In fact, he was fairly certain that she was going to say -_

"Sure. So long as it's not strip poker."

"Oh?" he raised a brow in amusement. _She was slowly proving to be far entertaining than he had anticipated. He could hardly sit still and had to conceal an already bulging erection with great difficulty._

_Not yet. Not just yet. He had to remain calm for optimum results. Patience is key._

"What game do you propose then ?" Hisoka allowed her a brief moment of control curious to see what she would do with it. 

"I was going to say memory game but that would be too boring since there's only the two of us. A game of flowers wouldn't be so entertaining either. Blackjack finishes a bit too quickly." Anya was tired of keeping her guard up and idle conversations such as these did well to ease her into her comfort zone. 

Hisoka played around with his cards idly awaiting a reply. And a reply did come - just not one he had seen coming in a mile. 

"How about we just stack cards ?"

He missed a step and the cards that he had been shuffling spilled messily onto the ground. Those words were like music to his ears. 

_Not now. Restrain yourself. Control. Exercise control. Breathe._

He had to bite his tongue and clutch at his bare skin until they bled from his fingernails to keep calm. Screw the point system. She _was_ toy material. Now where to place her was the question. 

"Hisoka are you alright?" she asked out of concern after badly misinterpreting his actions. 

_Alright ? Was he alright ? He felt better than he had in ages. That concern was so....delicious. She wore it so well._

They started stacking. 

"Competition ?" he asked sweetly and Anya was immediately on the alert. It would certainly spell her doom if she lost but on the other hand the rewards might just prove to be life saving. 

"Alright." she started off carefully. "State your terms."

"If I win." Hisoka paused for dramatic effect. "I get to ask you for a favour no questions asked."

Anya let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She had expected something far worse.

"And if I win, I'd like for you to save my life on one occasion no questions asked." 

He chuckled and she instantly knew that it was like asking the devil for salvation but what choice in the matter did she have ? 

They continued stacking in silence. Both solidifying their bases with enough cards before proceeding to the next layer. 

"So.. how did you get to know Illumi and why do you always show up for him ?"

_Not bad. She was going to use this opportunity for intel gathering. Not bad at all._

"Illumi and I go way back and don't you show up for people who require your assistance ?"

_He was good. Hisoka could effortlessly make conversation without divulging any important information._

"I mean, I would show up. But you don't strike me as the type to be tied down. You'd show up whenever you wanted to, if you wanted to. Nobody could make you appear or adhere to rules you disliked. Nobody could make you stick around if you didn't want to. Much like a wild anima-" she stopped herself in time. True, he was untamed but calling Hisoka a wild animal would not be polite by any standards. 

"Sorry."

He grinned.

"But you get my point. So why do you concern yourself with Illumi's agendas ?"

"I scratch your back, you scratch mine." was all he replied to that question. 

It suddenly made a whole lot of sense to Anya. Personally she wondered what kind of advantages Illumi contributed for Hisoka to _want_ to be around him like that.

"Do you find me attractive ?" the tables flipped. He was doing the questioning now although the question was so random that it threw her off guard. 

She blushed furiously. "Y-you're attractive. Yes."

_He had to exercise restraint even further. Her honesty was almost as refreshing as Gon's and Gon was already packaged and placed onto one of the highest if not the highest tier in Hisoka's regards, kept and maintained in a mint condition by none other than the joker himself._

"Attractive enough for you to call me _daddy_?"

She fumbled at that moment and her stack came crashing down. 

"I..I.With Illumi... That was a mistake earlier...I had no intention -"

"To check him out ?" Hisoka cut her off mid sentence with a predatory smirk. Then he leaned forward. "Fun fact. You're not completely off his radar."

The fuse to yet another bomb had been lit. 

She didn't know which to digest. The fact that she had disappointingly lost to the magician or that Illumi might have some form of invested interest in her other than business. 

The confusion on her face was evident and it was then that he had decided where he would place her. 

_The potential in her was far too great to pass up. Played right and played well, he could cause a ruckus in the assassin's life as well. There and then Hisoka fantasized about the things he could mess up beyond repair. The lives he would be able to play with._

Words haven't even been invented yet for the value he saw in her. For a long time now, Gon had been his front runner. His go to. His muse when he felt like it. And quite frankly he wasn't specifically looking for anyone who could precede the potential that he saw in Gon. 

Life was full of wonderful surprises indeed. 

And as she lost her mind once again to wishful and lustful dreams, Hisoka sought to do more damage. 

"Would you like to see what he's currently up to?" he stood up and smiled a vicious smile. 

"I could take you there."


	16. Hook and Lined

She hurriedly grabbed a pair of blue shorts and a black singlet to change into while wincing at the pain when soft fabric brushed against injured flesh. 

Anya was human and curious after all. _What was Illumi usually up to when he had business to attend to anyway?"_

"Let's not take all day." Hisoka beckoned for her to come over and crouched for her to ride him piggy-back style. 

"Oh. I can walk Hisoka. It's alright."

"No." he smiled a sickeningly sweet smile. "You're too slow. We'll get caught." he pointed out. 

"You mean I'll get caught. You'd be out of there by the time anyone could say hot potatoes."

He gave a slight chuckle as she mounted him carefully from the back. 

"Are you alright ? I'm not too heavy am I ? Also, apologies in advance but I think i've got some blood on your clothes." she tried in vain to wipe the bloodstains away. 

"You should worry about yourself."

She relaxed. 

"If you get too heavy for me I'll just throw you off."

"Hisokaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh !" 

He swiftly jumped from the window without warning and landed several feet below onto the east wing balcony. 

She clutched on to him like her life depended on him. And it did, quite literally. 

"I regret this. Turn back. Turn back turn back."

He started moving once again at quicker pace on leveled ground. The red haired magician navigated his way through the estate with ease and skillfully evaded anyone who crossed paths with them. 

Anya's long hair swished behind her as cold air blew in her face. This was the most fun she had actually experienced in a long while. She threw back her head and laughed merrily. 

Hisoka's expression turned into one full of glee. Occasionally it was good to let go and enjoy. After all it had also been his policy to work hard and to play equally as hard unlike Illumi whose policy it was in which play took a non-existent seat. They continued at that pace for a bit and little did she know that the magician had taken the longer route on purpose just to humor her.

If she had known, she would have been flattered.

But not as much as she would have been mortified if she realized just what he had in store for her.

Like the sadist that he was, Hisoka took great delight in allowing his targets a moment of joy. It would only be all the more satisfying to watch when everything comes unraveling rapidly much later and the look of disbelief on his victim's faces would only seal the deal.

They came to sudden halt in front of a towering glass window overlooking what seemed to be a huge dinner hall. There were rows of sharp looking butlers on either sides of the vicinity. 

The occupants of the table must have been rather preoccupied with the topic of conversation for nobody bothered to notice the odd looking pair and their clumsy attempt at hiding themselves. 

"Whoops." was all Hisoka had to say although nothing about it had been entirely unintentional. The jester meant for Illumi to sense their presence and sense them he did although the assassin did nothing to reveal that he was aware. 

"They haven't seen us we're good to go." Anya peeked out to have a closer look. 

Seated at the head of the table was a cunning looking man in a tuxedo. He looked to be in his fifties with eyes that were set too near together and hair that was beginning to grey. The woman beside him was evidently dressed to the nines. She had heavy jewelleries adorning her neck and her hair was pinned up in the way that would showcase a good amount of glittering hair pins, no doubt each costing a sinful amount of money. She was very much engrossed in the conversation with a rather excited Kikyo. They seemed to get along very well while a rather bulky man who had arms that looked like they could crush a human like snapping a piece of twig, seated beside Kikyo was involved in what looked like a serious conversation with the other man. 

And right at the very end of the table, in a tuxedo looking very crisp was none other than Illumi himself. He was the epitome of poise and decorum, giving out an image of a rather delicate porcelain China doll that he was anything but. Illumi's silky hair which usually framed his face in a curtain like manner was swept into a neat ponytail. 

He carried a hint of femininity along with a side of manliness as his toned body filled out the suit. She had never before met a man who played both and neither so well. 

For the billionth time Anya found herself wordless at how blatantly unfair life was. Some people were just bestowed with everything and more while others were lucky if they even managed to get one good thing in their lives. 

It was at that moment that she realized there was one other person whom she had yet to observe. This person was seated directly across Illumi and it was as if life itself wanted to make things more mysterious than it should be for the stranger was conveniently hidden from her view by the butlers were mobilised to serve lunch as if on cue. 

"Hisoka, I can't hear a word they're saying. Is it possible to get any closer ?" 

His eyes sparkled with mischievous delight. 

"Only for today your wish is my command." 

And once again they were off. 

It had been on the tip of her tongue to ask him just exactly how many times had he visited the Zoldyck estate. Hisoka seemed to know his way around confidently and effortlessly. Then again there was hardly a moment where the magician doubted himself and she decided to shove the question for a later time. 

They crouched down low as Hisoka inched closer to the entrance of the building. With a single finger against his lips signalling for her to stay silent, Hisoka swiftly identified the number of butlers standing by the door.

"Hisoka." she hissed. "We're not here to kill anybody." Anya violently gestured with her hands. "No killing. Don't kill. Or we. head. back."

He ignored her and her audacity to deny him fun when opportunity presented itself.

"Hisoka no!"

But it was too late. All she computed was a blurry movement before sounds of groans and sickening thuds which sounded very much like bodies collapsing to the floor filled her ears. 

He reappeared barely scathed licking his fingers. Evidently they were no match for him. 

She glared daggers at him and sharply turned to limp her way back when - 

"Relax. They're only knocked out." he lied. 

"Oh. I really thought you were going in for the kill. Say, you're not as bad as I thought you would be."

Hisoka smiled a smile that was very often mistakened to be genuine to the untrained eye. "Thanks. Now shall we?"

And they were on the go once again - into the hall this time while swiftly sidestepping the bodies. 

"We're underdressed. Severely underdressed." Anya gaped at the decorations adorning the corridor to the hall. 

A jump, a slide and one final sprint was all it took and they were finally within earshot. Hisoka had found them the perfect spot sandwiched behind multiple tall and heavily blossoming potted plants for cover. 

And that was where Anya finally managed to catch a glimpse of Illumi's guest. 

The girl or rather woman, was equally to die for. She had large impressionable amethyst coloured doe like eyes with the longest lashes adorning them. Her nose was dainty and perfect paired with a set rose coloured lips that were just mesmerising when she spoke. 

She radiated an aura so warm and inviting that it was downright difficult to not walk over to her and give her a hug.

 _So this was Himari._

Anya felt her heart slowly crumple at the sight before her. If anything, it was questionable how Illumi still retained any form of self control. 

Hisoka covered his face with his palms. He was beside himself in glee. The stage had been set and the damage was irreversible. He had confirmed exactly what he wanted to know and things were far better than he had thought. She was already involved with the assassin even if she hadn't yet realized the depth of her involvement. 

There and then Hisoka hatched plans for the unfortunate soul beside him. Love, in the wrong hands was a dangerous weapon indeed. He would plant the knife deep inside her and twist it slowly when the time was right. He would have her on her knees begging for mercy and he would offer her temporary salvation before dashing it to pieces on the ground. 

She would lose her mind no doubt and the minute that happens, he'd go out of his way to set her down a path of no return. An ugly path of self destruction. Therein he would create yet another creature that the world would be apalled at. His very own Frankenstein. 

Hisoka chuckled softly to himself. 

And if he was fortunate enough, a certain assassin would be strung along in the mess. He'd have him dangling like a puppet in his elaborate schemes. 

It was perfect beyond reasoning and his purpose there was complete. He stole away into the night before she could realize his absence. 

"Illumi, you should spend some personal time with Himari and get to know her better." the man beside Silva spoke. Silva and Kikyo nodded their heads in agreement.

"Very well." Illumi pushed back his chair, gracefully walked over to Himari and offered her his hand. 

Anya was in disbelief at this point. With all that he had put her through not to mention the ice cold attitude he had up all the time, it was almost impossible to believe that the gentleman in front of her was actually Illumi. The man handled Himari with the grace of a prince. It was surreal.

They took a walk away from the table as butlers made way for the pair. 

Her legs moved even before her head could rationalize the point behind her actions. She found yet another hiding spot on her own this time and tailed the couple despite the guilt gnawing away at her. 

"I like it better when you wear your hair down." Himari gazed into his eyes. 

"Sure." 

And then in one fluid movement he removed his hair tie. Raven hair cascaded like a waterfall and enveloped him once more. 

He stepped forward and closed the gap between them. Himari laced her fingers through his hair and pulled him even closer waiting for him to take the lead.

What followed soon was a gentle kiss that turned passionate by the second. Neither seemed to want to let go any sooner. 

Anya froze in her hiding place. It had gotten way too intimate and her heart was getting out of hand. For one, she couldn't believe that the stone hearted assassin had the capacity to love in this manner. The second revelation came even more as a shock to her. What she had thought was a harmless crush on Illumi turned out to be something far more serious. And her heart had just confirmed that. 

After all, the assassin hadn't asked her to fall for him. He'd probably murder her on the spot if he knew. She was his end of the investment and that was all. 

_So why did she fall for him?_

It was then that she frantically remembered a certain magician with whom she had travelled with. 

Anya buried her head in her hands in despair. She must have left him behind when she trailed them and now it wouldn't be surprising if he had left her on her own. She couldn't very well expect Hisoka to stay put all day. Frustrated as she was, there was simply no one to put the blame on. This was something she did to herself.

There was no choice but to stay now. She couldn't very well go back the way they came from not that she had even remembered the route that Hisoka had taken. And now a new problem had cropped up - she would be trapped here until someone found her and decided her fate. 

Anya secretly wished that it would be either Lady Kikyo or Silva who would stumble upon her from the dining hall. They would be swift in putting her out of her misery. And then it would all be over.

Fatigue slowly overcame her being. It was all she could do to cover her ears and close her eyes as a form of defense from the kiss that went on and on and on.

Then slowly like slipping into a well deserved dream she allowed sleep to swallow her whole and put her out of her misery.


	17. A Deal Is A Deal

_Two loud impatient knocks on the door had him on standby mode._

_He approached cautiously, needled tucked away ready to be tossed at a moment's notice._

Illumi opened the door to a horrid sight. 

Standing before him shaking and covered in what looked like glass shards and her own blood was Anya. 

He took his time to scan her from head to toe before stepping aside to let her in. 

She had expected some scolding on his end at least. A sarcastic remark. More insults. Something. Anything. 

Anything would have been better than the silence she was forced to currently endure. 

Silence that was so very loud. 

"You're not going to say something?" someone had to say something and it didn't seem like he was keen to start a conversation so she was compelled to.

"There wasn't a need to." came the cool reply. There it was again - Illumi was famous for his one-liners that never failed to deliver a swift end to any budding conversation.

She couldn't detect anything from his stone cold reaction. Not anger. Not disappointment. Nothing. It was frustrating beyond comparison.

"You should." she continued choking up on a few tears that threatened to pour down her already dirt smeared cheeks.

"Don't you want to know what else I did, where I was and what I was up to?" the bitterness was hard to conceal in her tone. 

_Flashback_

_She awoke to pitch darkness welcoming her like an old friend and to a very empty hall._

_The event was over and all the guests were long gone._

_What came next was inevitable._

_She navigated her way through darkness with her heart in her mouth to the nearest glass window and wildly snatched up anything hard her hands could feel. Then, with all her might, she stepped back and threw the hard object at the window effectively shattering an opening that was just wide enough for a person her size to squeeze through._

_That had been the easy part._

_She bit her lip until it bled as glass shards dug into her flesh when she crawled through the window one excruciating move at a time._

_Once out, she had walked around aimlessly bathed in moonlight until she chanced upon a familiar pathway which eventually lead her back to the place she had intended on going._

_End flashback_

Illumi casually walked over to the walkie talkie on the bed and picked it up. 

"Yes, this is Illumi speaking. Send a team to inspect the hall and clean it up if necessary. There is no need to alarm the family with intruder alerts, it has been taken care off." he paused to regard Anya once more. 

"Take care of any bloodstains in the vicinity. I don't want mother asking questions in the morning."

Anya was quick to note how swift and authoritative Illumi dealt with the mess like it was second nature. And in the morning there would be no traces of anything unusual. Like it all never happened.

Illumi gestured for her to have a seat while reaching for a sterile packaging stored neatly in the cupboard and as she stumbled to settle on the couch, he pulled up a chair in front of her. 

Anya threw him a puzzled look as he methodically opened up the package and slipped on a pair of surgical gloves before picking up a pair of fine tweezers. 

_She quietly thought about all the times he must have come home injured from work and had to patch himself up._

"Don't you think we had better let the medical team handle this?" her voice shook from the strain of anticipating fresh jolts of sharp pain that would soon come. 

"Lean back and place your leg over mine." came an order which he expected to be obeyed.

Anya hesitated at first before complying. After all, it couldn't possibly get any worse than -

"ARGHHH STOP STOPPP !"

Illumi had started tweezing out the glass shards from her skin without so much as a warning. 

The tears that were earlier contained with much difficulty spilled over from the corner of her eyes soaking her cheeks. 

"Illumi stop. I'M BEGGING YOU." she could have sworn that the corners of his mouth flicked upwards for a hot second. 

_That sadistic son of a -_

"So you prefer having infected bits of glass in your skin ?" he sneered. 

She fumed inwardly at how much sense he always made.

He mistook her silence for submissive obedience. 

"Bite down on that pillow and hold still."

Something about his tone suggested that he wouldn't mind leaving the shards in there if she so much as disrupted him again.

He continued on with the efficiency of a trained surgeon.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Half an hour passed by in agony on her part and silence on his part._

Illumi dropped the last piece of glass coated in blood and some skin into a kidney shaped dish but he was far from done. 

Anya let the pillow fall from her mouth and released a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. Illumi had begun cleaning up the wounds with some antiseptics and it stung but it was nothing compared to the ordeal she was put through earlier.

The worst was over so both settled into a comfortable silence. 

"So what's the punishment ?" she looked down at her feet. 

"I think - " he dabbed the antiseptics on a little harder on purpose as she winced. "You've punished yourself plenty already so it'll do."

Anya quickly re-positioned herself to look at Illumi. _He couldn't have-_

"Did you take us for fools ?" Illumi continued in a rather cheery tone. "Father had already detected the two of you when you were sneaking around and had given out orders to kill on sight."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Amane and Tsubone convinced father that they would deal with the intruder post lunch. They bought you some time and spared you from me." Illumi picked up a curved needle and thread next having prepared a syringe of anesthesia.

Anya's mind raced with thoughts as she slowly comprehended the situation. So Amane and Tsubone had gone out of their way to save her because if it had been up to Illumi, she would have already been on a one way trip to the afterlife.

He prepared to suture some deep cuts over her legs.

"So what were you doing with Hisoka?" the question came so blunt and straightforward that she froze up instantly.

Anya took one good look at Illumi suturing up her leg and decided on the spot that it would certainly spell her doom to lie to an assassin who was currently sticking a needle into her flesh. She nervously gulped. 

"We...we were spying on you." she spoke in a barely audible whisper half hoping that the assassin wouldn't be able to hear her and fervently wishing that he'd drop the topic already. 

"You were up to no good. Hisoka, I understand. But you..." Illumi trailed off clearly displeased. 

"Illumi I can explain. I was just curious." 

He raised up a brow. _"Curious ?"_

"I just wanted to know what you were usually up to when you were busy. I was bored okay ? A-and Hisoka offered to help is all."

"So Hisoka offered to _help_." the assassin seemed a bit peeved. Hisoka had clearly gotten the upper hand this time around. "You could have just asked me."

"Eh?" Anya was taken aback. "You would have just told me? But I thought you didn't like me." the words tumbled right out of her mouth. 

Illumi fixed his gaze onto her, face devoid of any expression.

"You see ! You do that and I can't read you. I don't know what you're thinking." she leaned back in exasperation. 

Illumi finished up the remaining sutures. Then ever so slowly, he inched closer to her until their faces were only inches apart from each other. She could feel his quiet breath on her face and tried her hardest to not clam up at this sudden intrusion of personal space. It didn't help that he smelled of fresh laundry and pleasant dreams.

"I don't want you associating with Hisoka." he spoke with stern finality and a hint of possessiveness. _If she didn't know any better it was almost as if he cared._

She dared to breathe out the next few words. "But you can ?"

_It wasn't fair to say the least. He could have Himari all to himself but she couldn't even hang around Hisoka?_

"Because -" He pulled off the sterile gloves from his hand and brushed a cold slender finger against her cheek, successfully eliciting a shudder from her being.

"I know what I'm doing." he steadied his gaze on her. 

_She felt as if her body was on fire. It was insane how this man could just push all her buttons and make her feel so sinfully good when he was the very reason she was knee deep in this mess._

"Himari...Himari is really pretty." she was already caught red handed so might as well.

He continued to stare into her soul. 

"Firstly." Illumi stated as a matter of factly "Yes she is pretty. And secondly, she will most likely be the mother of my children in the future so this will be the last time you address her so informally." 

_Cruel. He was so cruel._

"Then... it shouldn't matter who I choose to spend my time with." she decided to fight fire with fire despite a raging gut feeling that she would end up badly burned. 

"Is that so ?" Illumi mused. "Very well then but consider yourself warned."

He pulled back to tidy up their surroundings before casually saying _"If things go south don't expect me to save you."_

Anya inspected her wounds that were now neatly sutured up and cleaned. Illumi had done a pretty good job but she wasn't going to flatter him even more. No, her lack of self control around him did that already. 

There was only one thing left to do now and that was to take a warm shower before hitting the bed.

As she made her way past the dressing table a certain object caught her eye. Feigning a tired sigh, Anya backtracked for her cellphone. Between all the chaos and piggy-back riding Hisoka she had completely and utterly forgotten about that useless piece of metal she called her phone. Not that anyone had tried to contact her in the last few months anyway. 

_It was just as Illumi had said. She wasn't missed because she belonged to nobody and subsequently had nobody to return to. In the end, she was just another lonely soul struggling to find her purpose in life._

Just as she lifted her phone a piece of crumpled paper fell to the ground. Her heart skipped a beat as she bent over to pick it up.

Sure enough in a barely legible scribble were the words _"One use only. Be wise ~ ♣"_ on it. 

A gasp escaped her lips. _"It can't be. No way."_

It was too good to be true. After all, she had lost to the flaming haired jester. There was no way that he would -

She hurriedly unlocked her phone to check her contact list and sure enough a new number had been added to her contacts under the name "One Extra Life".

Her mind was in a daze. It was him. It was him, no doubt. If she called the number right here, right now it would definitely be Hisoka picking up on the other end of the line. 

But she had lost to him in the game of stacking cards. If anything, it was she who needed to keep her end of the bargain. _To do whatever he wanted no questions asked on one particular occasion._

With that in mind, only a single thought repeated itself tirelessly within her like a carousel on an infinite loop. 

_"Why ?"_

_Somehow luck had it that the magician was feeling generous enough to bestow upon her a gift._

_Luck or a curse ?_

Anya stole a sideways glance at Illumi who seemed oblivious to her reactions and ready for bed. _If the assassin knew anything about their little deal he certainly wasn't letting on._

She considered his words earlier very carefully. _If things go south don't expect me to save you._

The circumstances of her situation weighed heavily on her soul. Once again the jester had her right where he needed her to be. As ridiculous as Illumi was, HIsoka was far worse simply because he was unpredictable like nature ; a whole new force to be reckoned with.

It was too late to turn back now anyway. She had made a deal with yet another devil and was now caught between the two in the name of an assassin and a joker. 

Anya chucked her phone back on the dressing table and snatched a towel on the way to a nice warm shower unbeknownst to the fact that a certain assassin had indeed been keeping track of her misfortunes all along. 

_If only she knew._


	18. A Beginner's Mission ( New Arc )

_Three months later_

_Ddrrrriiiinnnnnnngggggggggggggggggggggg_

The plain looking alarm clock rang merrily as it shattered the serene atmosphere of a dark room. It had served its purpose of waking up both individuals who were lying down in bed but it wasn't necessary. 

He never had to rely on an alarm clock to wake him up. Illumi's body had always biologically tuned itself to get up when required. 

The same could never be said about Anya but today was an exception - because she couldn't sleep all night long. 

The both sat upright on cue with the assassin taking on a mild expression of shock. It usually took a lot more than just an alarm clock to wake her up and that had been one of his primary annoyances to start the day with. 

"Nervous ?" Illumi monotoned while tossing over the covers to stand up, ready to begin his day. 

"Definitely." Anya stumbled out of bed in a clumsy attempt to begin her day. 

"That's because you aren't a Zoldyck." Illumi pointed out for the millionth time. 

"Well fine. Yes, I'm not. Thank you _kindly_ for pointing that out to me." she snapped back at him. 

He merely shrugged before adding. "It is your first job after all so it is natural to feel that way." To him it was nothing more than a day in his life like how things always were. It was his version of a 9 to 5 job with some added job hazards. 

But to her it was -

"I can't believe I'm doing this." she put her head in her hands. "How am I going to kill someone ? What if they're the good guys ?" 

She stared at him in horror. "What if we're the bad guys and I'm working for the wrong side ?"

"You will do well to remember that we are neutral in carrying out our client's orders. Don't ask questions and get the job done. None of this is personal." he reminded her before picking up a blue towel on the way to a refreshing shower. 

"But what if -"

"Continue asking questions like these and you'll unravel even before the job begins. Keep your mind blank like a clean slate and do what you're supposed to do." he cut her off sternly and faced her with a deadly expression. 

"If you keep forgetting the rules I will have no choice but to -"

"I haven't ! I .. I'm good to go." she turned away from the assassin in order to gain some form of control over her anxiety but she could still feel his piercing gaze on her back. 

He wasn't done with her.

"You will not go on this mission only to be a damsel in distress. I will not have the mission compromised simply because of your inability to adhere to the rules. Do not prove to be a liability to me or I can promise you that the consequences shall be dire." His words rained upon her ears like bullets as he drove the point in. It was imperative that the lady understood her position in the job. 

"Oh and one more thing." Illumi spoke to her darkly. "You kill when I ask you to kill without hesitation, _not even if it is someone you happen to know._ "

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Part of the assignment had been to follow his orders down to the last syllable without so much as a query. Illumi didn't indulge her in where they were headed or who they were supposed to kill. No, all of that would be probably be disclosed privately upon arrival at their destination if he felt kind enough to entertain her curiosity so in the meantime, she would have to sit tight and -

"Illumi, can we talk ?" Anya was growing tired of having to play the silent game around him. Usually they would travel in lavish private vehicles at the Zoldyck family disposal but the current assignment had required for both to use a public transport. As such, Illumi had gone to the lengths of booking a first class compartment in a train travelling further north. Not that she had any idea when he had made the booking or how the exclusive first class compartment which was usually reserved for high ranking individuals came to be theirs for the evening. 

Illumi who was seated cross legged across her in an expensive looking garb didn't bother to entertain her, choosing instead to look outside the window of their compartment. 

Harsh winds rattled the windows of their compartment. A blanket of snow had consumed their surroundings stretching out for miles and miles. It was winter and it was freezing but the assassin didn't even bother with any winter garments. 

They had been travelling for two good hours and the silence was deafening.

"Can we please not pretend that there's something interesting outside the window. I can see what you're looking at and there's literally nothing to see out there with all the snow covering whats left to see." travelling with the assassin proved to be quite the challenge as he was quite the creature in solitude. 

"Interesting is a matter of perspective." he simply retaliated. 

"Can I PLEASE ask you something then since you won't talk to me unless it's absolutely necessary." Anya rolled her eyes. 

"If you must." the assassin tucked a few strands of hair behind his ear annoyed at having to entertain her. He was so used to being alone that her presence was almost unbearable. 

"I know that you must have thought that I'm ready for the job or else you wouldn't have brought me along. But just in case, if things do go south....." she hesitated knowing his likely response to her question so she decided to switch it up. "What can I do to save myself?"

He was taken aback for a bit. Part of him had expected her to ask for a rescue like she always had- _"If things do go south, will you save me?"_ And all of him were prepared to roll his eyes at her with a monosyllabic "No." 

But here she was once again asking for something that was within her means of ability. Personally Illumi had credited her for being wise but he didn't so much as convey it. This piqued his interest for he was now forced to put himself in her shoes before thinking of a backup plan which suited her abilities and potential.

"Hm..." he started off musing his options along the way. "If I were you, I would be extremely observant of my surroundings from the moment I step foot into the vicinity. In case of a struggle or in the worst case scenario whereby the target or the hunted escapes the assassination and becomes the hunter, it would be beneficial to have pre-identified all the items in the area which could work as a potential weapon. Use whatever you can to your advantage. For example, you're a girl with a rather innocent looking face. If a struggle broke out in public, people would be more than likely to help and shield someone like you than your pursuer. Nobody would suspect that you're in the assassination business, so there's that."

 _"He is good."_ Anya thought to herself as she took mental notes. _"Scratch that, he's better than good."_

And indeed he was for Illumi was a person with plenty of positive attributes - a good teacher being one of them. 

"I notice that you haven't mentioned running away but you've always told me that I should run if the person I'm about to engage in battle is far superior to me in terms of skills." she recognized quickly that a simple conversation starter had turned into potential life saving lessons. She wasn't expecting Illumi to take her seriously but he did. And since he did, it would only be fair to apply his single most prized principle - To exploit any situation and play it to one's advantage. 

Illumi silently noted her intentions and felt joy spark in his being. _So she had been paying attention to his teachings after all._

"Good observation. I haven't mentioned running away this time because" Illumi narrowed his eyes. "I don't think you can."

"Pardon ?" she gaped at him in surprise. 

"Running away from a battle you know you can't win is a skill highly overlooked by many. Suppose the mission fails and the target we're attempting to assassinate survives. What do you think happens next ?" he scrutinized her hoping she'd come to a conclusion on her own. 

"I think... that the tables would turn. They would no doubt try to kill whoever was after them - you'd be a harder target so they'd be after the next best thing. Me." Anya faltered.

"You're not quite there yet. The tables would indeed turn but you'd be lucky if they kill you." Illumi fiddled around with his needles. "The trick is to put yourself in their shoes and think the way they do. What would you do if someone was sent to kill you ? Would you be able to live in peace after killing the assassin sent after you or would you be tossing in your sleep awake at night wondering who sent the assassin in the first place ?" 

Cold sweat drenched the nape of her neck despite the low temperature in their compartment. She had only truly understood the circumstances of the situation they were in. 

"They'd hold me captive and torture me for information. The minute I expose the details of my client, I will be as good as dead. Even if my captors are in a good mood and decide to spare me, I'd be hunted down by the very clients I exposed for putting their security at risk...." she paused to digest everything. "And since the kind of clients we accept are highly capable and influential individuals, the bounty on my head would be high. I'd be dead either way anyway."

"Precisely. So if the mission fails and you have information they need do you think that they'd let you get away so easily ?"

For once she remained mute. 

"You can't run even if you wanted to. Not in this mission. The only way out of this is to ensure that the job is a success and that all loose ends are tied up." 

"But Illumi we've trained in self defense. Maybe just maybe -"

"If we're talking about the worst case scenario and you end up being hunted down by our target, you will not be able to escape." Illumi finished with a dreadful finality. 

And suddenly she felt all kinds of fear stabbing away at her heart as a horrible realization dawned upon her. 

"Illumi...why won't you tell me who our target is ?"

"It wouldn't change a thing." Illumi turned away to focus his attention elsewhere while silently nuturing the hope that she doesn't come unhinged before the task begins. 

_The train chugged on mercilessly as empty obsidian eyes tried their best to ignore the silent tears streaming down the cheeks of a certain brown eyed amateur assassin._


	19. Arrival

They checked into a luxury suite and had a porter transport their luggage except for a small hand carry which Illumi insisted she carried. 

It was time to get to business. 

She stood back and allowed to Illumi to inspect the room for any bugs while she tampered with the security camera placed in the suite just like he had taught her to. Once in the clear they closed all the curtains and sat down to discuss. 

"We're here three days earlier than the arrival of our targets, exactly on schedule. This will give us plenty of time to familiarize ourselves with the location and map out every route in this vicinity. Leave nothing to chance." Illumi began the briefing session. 

She looked up at him in panic. _Targets. So it wasn't just one person ?? ___

__"There are ten of them." Illumi proceeded to lay out several pictures side by side on the table. "Recognize their faces well and burn it into your memory."_ _

__Anya took a hard look at each of the images displayed trying her best to remember each one by heart. She traced out their facial features and looked out of any special marks that might help her identify them ._ _

__"Perhaps it would be better if you told me who they are. Are you usually this cautious on every job or is this something else entirely ?" she dreaded the answer that was about to come her way._ _

__"Very well then." Illumi took a sip of his coffee before continuing. "These targets you're currently looking at are financially powerful and influential people as you have correctly guessed. They are known as the Ten Mafia Dons."_ _

__She bit her lip in anticipation._ _

__"So yes, this job calls for extra pre-caution. One wrong step and it will be fatal so we must not take uncalculated risks."_ _

__"Illumi why did you accept a mission like this when it sounds impossible ?" she sighed._ _

__"Because it isn't impossible. I could single handed-ly pull it off with additional preparations." he was confident of his abilities. "You're only here because it would make my job easier and as I've said before, I dislike leaving anything to chance so I factored you in."_ _

__"Alright then. I trust you know where I fit in all of this. All I ask is that you spare no details of this job. Be entirely honest with me and don't hide anything." she braced herself for the next set of information._ _

__He was pleased to see that she still had her head in the game._ _

__"As you wish. The Ten Dons are highly evasive individuals. Naturally they would have their fair share of enemies and hence they are always mobile. The only time you'd find all of them in the same place is during an annual mandatory meeting before the Underground Auction."_ _

__"And that is why we're here. Because it's the only chance we'll get at having all ten in the same location." things were making sense to her now. "What's the Underground Auction ?"_ _

__"It is an exclusive event also known as the mafia community's auction. The items catalogued in that auction are terribly difficult to obtain if not otherwise illegal. Ownership of such items would boast of the wealth and social standing of the family who claims it in the ranks of mafia associates. But this year the auction isn't going to go as planned." Illumi casually finished up the rest of his coffee._ _

__"Because of us ?? Oh my goodness." she flailed her arms at him "Do you realize how many people are going to be after us because of this ???? You're crazy Illumi !"_ _

__"Not because of us." he rolled his eyes. "The Phantom Troupe will set out to steal the auction items and it is likely that they will be successful."_ _

__"Phantom Troupe ?" Great. The list of trouble makers kept growing._ _

__"They're a bunch of dangerous individuals who are always up to no good." Illumi remarked without skipping a beat.__

____

____

__"You mean, like Hisoka ?"_ _

__Illumi smirked at the instant association. She wasn't wrong in the slightest. "Correct. Speak of the devil, Hisoka will be part of the heist."_ _

__"Oh god. You mean he's ACTUALLY part of the troupe ? Why am I even surprised." she groaned remembering the last time she encountered Hisoka's bloodlust. "I'd hate to be on the opposing team and run into Hisoka. Please tell me we're not going to end up fighting AGAINST him."_ _

"Oh? And here I thought the two of you were all buddy buddy." lllumi teased in a serious tone that she couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. "Anyway Hisoka will not be a problem although it is important that you steer clear of him during the mission. Trust nobody."

"Alright. Since he's not one of the targets I'll just stay out of his sight." she nodded in compliance. "Back to the topic, how do we fit into the picture ?"

"When the Phantom Troupe make off with the items, the mafia dons will be more than likely to send their bodyguards to retrieve said items and get rid of the culprits. They will try and fail against the Phantom Troupe. This will then provoke the dons into hiring assassins to take care of the phantom troupe and this where we come into the picture. Our job is to eliminate the ten dons before the dons' assassins finish off the Phantom Troupe.

"Oh. So we're working in the interest of the Phantom Troupe then ? We're on the same side as Hisoka thank goodness !" she collapsed on the couch in relief. 

"You can say that. The one who hired me and by extension, you is the head of the Phantom Troupe, Chrollo."

"He sounds like a scary guy though." Anya looked at Illumi deep in thought. 

"Hm. Who, Chrollo ?"

"Mhm" Anya nodded her head. 

"You haven't met the man. Why do you say that ?" Illumi weighed her words carefully curious in her judgement. 

"Because he is someone who is able to think several steps ahead and hired us to take care of the upcoming mess. This Chrollo guy is someone with foresight and if the situation should escalate exactly as he has predicted it, then I think that he is a genius." 

_Not bad. Not bad at all._

Illumi hummed in agreement. "There's one last thing you should know about."

"Oh ? And what's that ?" Anya looked at him quizzically. 

"The ten dons are likely to hire extremely capable assassins to go after the Phantom Troupe should their bodyguards fail as I've mentioned before. As you know, the top picks of the industry are my own family members."

"No... NO WAY." Anya gasped. 

"It is likely that they'll approach father for the job." Illumi spoke so casually that he may as well have been commenting on the weather. 

"B-but you're family ! You can't be -

"On opposing sides ? Why yes, we can. At any rate, it'll come down to who gets the job done first. If they do end up hiring father, we'll have to be quick or there wouldn't be a client left to collect payment from."

Anya sat down in bewilderment. Not only did they have to time their wait to kill the ten dons, they would also have to do it in record breaking time before Silva gets the opportunity to murder Chrollo. The window for mistakes were non existent.

She was beginning to get a headache. 

"We'll take our leave in exactly half an hour. I'll leave to you to chart our surroundings on your own." 

"You're not coming with me Illumi ?" she got up to make herself a cup of tea.

"I've got business to attend to." he stood up and made his way to the door in long elegant strides. "I trust that you know what you're doing. Don't be too obvious." and with that he was gone. 

She screamed into a pillow in frustration. He had put far too much faith in her that it would feel soul crushingly horrible to disappoint him. A teacher of his caliber expected outstanding results. The only problem was that she wasn't particularly outstanding. She wasn't Killua. 

Anya looked at the clock. She had only half an hour to relax and gather her thoughts before going out to map every nook and cranny of the area.

Three days. She'd have to familiarize herself to perfection in three days or else. 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Clad in a little black dress that stopped just below her knees and some of ankle boots, she positioned a pair of decent looking sunglasses on the bridge of her nose while taking a stroll and mentally noting down the area. 

_Don't be obvious and look as touristy as possible._

She stopped to ask for directions and feigned interest in some trinkets sold by the roadside stalls. 

"How much for this beaded keychain?" she stopped to ask the owner of said stall. 

"That would be 500 jenny, miss."

"Aww. That's too much. Could you lower it a little ?"

The shopkeeper seemed hesitant. 

"300 jenny for a pretty girl like you but that's the lowest I'll go."

"300 jenny it is then." Anya took out her purse as the shopkeeper seemed pleased to have sold something. 

"So business here is good eh?" she tried to strike up a random conversation with the shopkeeper. 

The older woman sighed before saying "No. We'd be lucky if we sold anything. The people who come here are plenty wealthy but they're not interested in things like these." 

"Aww. That's a bummer. These trinkets are pretty though." Anya fingered a few more on display. 

"Well that's life. Bet you like anything all of them gather for the illegal auction of course. They've got their eyes on something else so merchandise like ours hardly sell."

"Oh ? What auction ?" Anya pretended to be surprised.

"The auction that sells illegal goods." the woman dropped her voice. "Rumor has it that it's that time of the year again. You're not from around here are you ? So I suppose you wouldn't know."

"I'm not from around here that's for sure but I'd be interested in something like that. Might I know the location ?" Anya lowered her voice to a barely audible whisper. 

The woman hesitated. 

"I'll take five trinkets at full price."

The woman grinned. Money talks. 

"I'll tell you all you need to know sweet girl." the woman motioned for her to come closer. "There's a hidden alley just down the street. It is so strategically placed that it's easy to miss."

Anya scrunched up her face. "Oh. You're telling me the entrance itself is going to be hard to find."

"No no, not the entrance. People like us you see, we're poor. Some of us have tried our hands at stealing some of the goods in hopes of reselling them to pay for a better life. It always ends up badly because our people get butchered by the security they've placed there."

Anya looked at her in excitement. 

"You mean to say... you're going to tell me the entrance to the storage area for the auction. Where the goods are actually placed ?"

The woman only smiled. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anya found the alleyway pretty quickly with the information given to her. She had to admit, any tom, dick and harry who wasn't particularly interested in the auction or the goods would have easily overlooked the area. 

_"Let's see."_ Anya monologued as she navigated her way through. _"One right turn."_

She turned right at the junction. 

_"Followed by two lefts."_

She kept left and continued forward where there were more shops up ahead. 

Her keen eye latched onto what looked like a garage door behind the souvenir booths that were clearly set up to hide it from plain sight. No doubt that the people who manned those booths were part of the security team instructed to keep an eye out for any intruders that might attempt to steal the products stored. 

She paused for a second before deciding that she would pay those booths a visit in guise of an innocent tourist who lost her way. 

Unfortunately, as she neared the booths, the workers tensed up in a threatening manner. She instantly regretted her decision knowing that if she turned back now it would seem suspicious and they would pursue her until she was either caught or dead. 

Her mind panicked but she had to keep moving forward at a steady pace. 

The workers looked like they were ready to confront her aggressively when -

"Honey, where have you been ? Don't you know that it's not safe to wander around like that on your own?" a velvety voice greeted her. 

She froze. _"Honey ?"_

The man walked towards her and cupped her face. 

"Don't you ever stray too far from me again." and the man proceeded to pull her closer before pressing his soft lips onto hers. It sent chills down her spine.

She blushed furiously and leaned into the kiss realizing that the man had just saved her life, whoever he was. 

Their company kept their distance half disgusted at the public display of affection.

"Oi. Take your fucking love story elsewhere. Better yet get a room." one of the ruder workers yelled before turning his back onto them. "Fucking lovebirds." he cursed loudly. 

It worked and did its job of stirring up discomfort in whomever who was forced to be an unwilling spectator to what should have been an otherwise private moment. The workers who were really the auction security guards in disguise disregarded the pair instantly. 

Anya allowed the man to pull her away from the area and back to the main street. 

But he wasn't letting go of her hand. 

"I'm good to go sir. Thank you kindly for saving me back there." she tried to free herself from his grasp but to no avail. 

"Smile, keep walking and don't say a word." the man cautioned. 

They continued on all the way back to the suite lllumi had booked. Halfway through and Anya felt like running away to the furthest corner of the planet and hiding herself there for eternity. _How could she have been so stupid ? She should have known it was him._

The man opened the door to their suite and locked the door behind them when both were safely in. The curtains were still drawn and they were finally safe from public view. 

He began removing needles from his face first, then neck, followed by his shoulders and chest. Anya had witnessed this horror a million times over in the Zoldyck estate but it never failed to horrify her every single time. Of course. She should have known. 

And finally large black pools for eyes stared back at her. "What were you doing there ?"

"I-I..." she didn't know which to comprehend - that she had nearly compromised the mission and blown their cover by getting caught or that she had just _kissed_ Illumi Zoldyck and lived to tell the tale. 

"I found the entrance to the storage area." she blurted out in an attempt to appease the assassin.

He leaned in closer to her as her heart thumped wildly in her chest. _He was definitely going to kill her now for nearly screwing up._

Illumi paused, his lips hovering just inches away from her ear. The silence between them only served to heighten her anxiety as her heartbeat quickly became the only audible sound in the room. Then, in a single breath that tickled her ear, the assassin spoke.

"Good job."

_And her heart nearly fell out of her chest._


End file.
